


The Seekers of Light

by burymeonpluto



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Bad Ending, Basically, But I'm Not Going to Give Him One, Canon Divergence, Canon Universe, Dealing With Loss, Frienemies to Friends, Gen, Kingdom Hearts Style Character Death, No Spoilers for KH3, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Psychological Trauma, Rescue Mission, Riku Deserves a Break, Riku is So in Love, Running Gag, Slow Burn, Sora Becomes a Concept, Sora Gets Godoka'd, Subliminal Shipping, post-kh3
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-20
Updated: 2019-08-31
Packaged: 2019-10-13 04:45:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 26,582
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17481437
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/burymeonpluto/pseuds/burymeonpluto
Summary: After the final battle, Sora makes a great sacrifice for the sake of balance, and vanishes into the light. Some of those left behind praise him as a hero and move on, but Riku refuses to leave things as they are. So he gathers what help he can, and sets out to find Sora and bring him home. It’s no easy task— maybe even impossible. But in exchange for the True End, they will seek the Light. No matter the cost.No spoilers for KH3 here! This was born from years of speculation.





	1. Bad End

**  
**1  
  
  


“ _Explain yourself!_ ” Riku shouts, slamming both hands onto the large wooden desk. Anger is seeping through his skin. “What did you do?”

Yen Sid sits unmoving on the other side of the table, the only one in the room that didn’t jump at the sound of Riku suddenly kicking in the door. His calm eyes pass over the fuming boy that just stormed into his office. “It was Sora’s decision.”

“How can you say that?” he spits. He is trembling with fury. “Sora’s a dope. He doesn’t think these things through! You basically tricked him!”

“I gave him all the information and advice I could. I informed him of what may happen if he followed through with his decision. In the end, he chose it, and now you must live with it.”

“Like hell I will,” he seethes. “There’s no way he knew what he was getting into.”

The old man shakes his head. “I assure you, he did. It was a conscious sacrifice for the sake of many, including everyone here.” He gestures toward the others in the room.

Riku appears to have just noticed their presence. Ventus, Aqua, Roxas, and Lea stand stiffly nearby, the last of which raises a hand. “Hell-o.”

Riku only blinks at him before turning his attention back to Yen Sid. “But how could he have known? How could anyone have known?”

“He was the key.”

“Everyone’s always saying that!”

“Think, Riku. You’ve seen the Door to Light multiple times, have you not? It does not appear without reason. And who called it there? Who was by your side whenever it showed itself?”

His shoulders start to slump, ever so slightly. “Sora.”

“In all my years, I’ve never met anyone quite like that boy. Someone whose light burns so bright to be a beacon to those lost in the dark. Someone able to shelter so many lost souls within himself.” A solemn look comes over the man’s face. “He was the key in more than just the figurative sense. The balance we enjoy now would not exist without him.”

Riku leans forward, anger igniting in his chest once again. “But now _he_ doesn’t exist!”

“He was aware of the possibility. It was a destiny he apprehensively accepted.”

“So you’re not going to do anything about it?” he snaps. “Nothing at all? What about you,” his gaze cuts to the other four, “what are _you_ going to do? Are you saying Sora deserves this? Do you think you have more of a right to exist than he does?” They say nothing. Ventus fidgets uncomfortably on his feet. “We’re all standing here right now, so how are you going to repay him?” Still nothing. “You can’t ignore this!”

“Riku,” Yen Sid’s tone is firm. “We cannot undo what has been done, lest we unravel everything we’ve built so far. You must come to terms with this. Perhaps you will, in time.”

The boy shakes his head, fury not subsiding. “That is unacceptable.”

“Riku,” he warns.

“No. Do whatever you want. I’ve made up my mind.” His bluish eyes dart between the five of them. “I’m getting Sora back, whatever it takes. If none of you want to help, fine. Just stay out of my way.” And he thunders from the room, fists clenched at his sides, refusing to meet anyone’s gaze.

The door slams with finality behind him. How can they just _stand_ there?

But it doesn’t matter. He descends the large staircase with urgency. There’s so much to do. So much to figure out. His thoughts swirl like a great tempest. If he has no help, then… where does he even start?

He reaches the bottom of the spiral stairs just as a voice calls out: “Riku, wait!” and Ventus lands softly on the ground in front of him.

Riku didn’t even have the chance to glance up. A grin threatens to spill out from behind his frustration. With a name like Ventus, it’s no wonder he’s skilled at gliding. Maybe he practiced with that humour in mind.

The blonde’s murky blues are full of fire. “I want to help.”

Riku isn’t surprised. “You do?”

“Of course I do,” he stresses. “I owe Sora so much. But even if I didn’t, I don’t think he deserves this. Simply saying everything is okay the way it is now… it doesn’t feel right. There has to be another way.”

“Yeah. You’re right.”

A sad smile overcomes the boy’s face. “After everything he did to save me… how can I sleep at night if I don’t try to return the favour?”

Riku’s response is cut off by the sound of someone chuckling beneath their breath, and the two boys exchange glances. It only takes a moment to find the owner of the voice lurking within the shadows beneath the staircase. A face that matches Sora’s smirks back at them. His yellow eyes glint against the dark.

Ventus feels his pulse become unsteady, if only for a moment. “Vanitas.”

The black-clad boy is leaning casually against the wall, making no moves to join the conversation. That smirk is a sharp contrast to any of the other expressions Riku has seen him wear over the past few months. It’s not the grin of dark confidence he wore upon his return; the snarl from when he fought so hard against Sora pulling him from the darkness; the crazed smile of Xehanort’s possession; or the grateful calm after Sora and Ventus dived into his heart to free him from that grip. No, this smirk is different somehow. It’s vaguely challenging. It’s Vanitas’s way of seeking entertainment.

Well. If he insists.

Riku turns to address him, and Ventus looks as though he wants to disappear into himself. “So, what about you? Are you going to help?”

Vanitas laughs through his nose. “Are you stupid?” He’s met with nothing but a cold stare. “You realize I’m a being of pure darkness. ‘Helping’ isn’t exactly in my repertoire.”

“So is that a No?”

A smirk plays across his lips. “What’s in it for me?”

“You owe Sora something too,” he mutters.

“But what’s in it for _me_? I couldn’t care less about whether or not I owe that idiot anything.”

“What?”

“Because if you ask me, and I believe I’m an authority on this subject, what happened was Sora’s decision. Things can stay just the way they are as far as I’m concerned.” His disinterested expression begins to fade. “Unless there’s something for me to gain.”

Riku grits his teeth, grabbing Vanitas by the collar before the other can blink.

Vanitas doesn’t flinch. A grin twists onto his face. “Wanna have a go? I’m part of Sora, remember? Do you really think you can beat me?”

There are no words between them for a moment, and then suddenly, all of Riku’s frustration melts away. He releases his grip on Vanitas’s collar. Neither moves. “That reminds me: you two never got a chance to finish that duel of yours, did you? I guess you’ll never know which one is stronger.”

His grin drops. “I won that fight.”

“You sure?”

“I’m standing here, aren’t I?”

“That has nothing to do with it.” His eyes travel over Vanitas’s face, studying him. He shakes his head. “No, I don’t think so. You would’ve lost.”

Those words are not unlike a slap to the face. Vanitas takes the front of Riku’s shirt in both hands. “What did you say?”

“After all, Sora _is_ the original. You just borrowed his face. You’d be no match for him.”

“Fuck you,” he spits. “I had this face first. It’s _mine_.”

“Is that so?”

“And I could pummel that shrimp into the ground, for the record. You can bet on it.”

A wry grin sprouts onto Riku’s face. “Why don’t you prove it, then?”

There’s only a split second’s hesitation. Vanitas takes a step towards him, yellow eyes aflame. “You’re on. I’ll kick his ass so hard he’ll beat the ever-living hell out of _you_ for dragging him back here and subjecting him to the embarrassment.”

“I’ll look forward to it, then,” he smiles.

Vanitas shoves him away with his lips curled into a snarl. Anger radiates off his back as he storms from the tower, swearing under his breath.

Ventus glances back at Riku’s proud grin. “Whoa.” It’s the only thing he can say. His mind is still reeling from the confrontation, which was either the craziest or the ballsiest thing he’s ever seen. “Do you think he’ll really help?”

Riku nods. “After getting a reaction like that, I’m sure of it… He’s another piece of Sora. And if I know Sora—and _I do_ —he’ll follow through with that promise.”

“That felt more like a threat than a promise.”

He waves a hand. “Details.”

x

The orange sunset shines up from the horizon, and directly on Roxas’s face. There’s no shelter from the heat at his usual spot on the clock tower. The twilight seems more intense today. He can feel unease sitting atop his shoulders like a heavy sheet of lead. A sigh is pulled from a nest of regret. His calm and simple life didn’t last very long.

And he always finds himself back here in times like this. He has so many pleasant memories on the ledge of this tower, along with plenty of horrible ones. Maybe he’s hoping the good will eventually outweigh the bad… but if that’s the case, he’s going about it all wrong.

He smirks despite himself and takes a big bite of sea salt ice cream. The initial sting of the salt melts into that familiar creamy sweetness. Nostalgia bubbles up inside him. He can almost hear Lea and Xion laughing and goofing off by his side.

All he wanted was his life back. His normal, everyday life. Well, as normal as his life can ever be. He only needs Lea and Xion for that. And maybe Hayner, Pence, and Olette. That’s all. He doesn’t need Sora for his life to be right. Whatever Riku is planning to do… it has nothing to do with him.

As if on cue, Roxas hears the door to the roof latch open. Lea’s familiar footsteps stop next to him as they both take in the view of the sunset.

“Yo,” is all he says.

Roxas grimaces at the ice cream in his hand. He knows that’s not all. Might as well go all in. “You’re going to ask me to help Riku drag Sora back, aren’t you?”

Lea shrugs. “Well—”

“Too bad. I won’t.”

“Roxas,” he starts, but the blonde shakes his head.

“No, I won’t do it. I won’t risk losing everything again. Not when… it’s all I’ve ever wanted.” His gaze slips to the ground, fingers tightening around the popsicle stick. “I exist, Lea. I’m here as me and finally, truly no one else. I’ve got you and Xion back. That’s all I need.”

Lea quirks an eyebrow. “And you don’t think Sora deserves to exist as well?”

“That’s not the point.”

“But it is.” His hand claps down on Roxas’s shoulder. “Don’t you remember everything he did? How hard he fought for your right to exist? To erase all the hurt?”

He shrugs off the hand. “My life only fell apart in the first place because of him.”

“And you wouldn’t exist at all if it _weren’t_ for him!” No answer. Roxas already knows that. Lea is sure that he does. He lets out a patient breath. “You were both victims of circumstance, Roxas. Can’t you see that?”

Roxas still says nothing. His smoldering eyes refuse to meet Lea’s stare.

“Well, I’ve made my decision,” he mutters. “I’m going to help Riku drag him back. After everything… I feel like it’s the least I can do.”

Roxas’s jaw tenses up. Any words end up tangled in his throat.

“I’ll be waiting for you to change your mind.”

He can’t help but laugh. “What makes you think I will?”

Lea simply smirks. “Because I know you. We’re best friends. I’ve got it memorized.” He taps a finger against his temple. “Do you?”

Again, Roxas stays silent. Lea shrugs his shoulders and leaves him sitting there. The ice cream is beginning to drip down his hand in the heat of the sun.

x

-Ventus  
-Vanitas  
-Lea  
  
Is that all so far? Riku thought it would be more. He thought it would be easy.  
  
But it’s late now, and he’s exhausted. It’s been such a long day. He hasn’t rested at all since Sora vanished. He searched all over, worlds upon worlds, until finally…  
  
No. It’s fine. It’ll be _fine_.

He decides to stay in Twilight Town for the night. He’s not sure if he could take going back home right now.

x

Roxas frowns at the naked ice cream stick. It’s not a winner this time, either.  
  
He leans back on the heels of his hands, sighing to the falling sun. He missed this view. His missed this warmth. The peace of this place. It’s all he ever wanted.  
  
So, then, why is he not happy?  
  
The hatch opens behind him once again, this time with three voices behind it. Hayner, Pence, and Olette file out onto the ledge of the clock tower. The real ones this time. Not bits of data. The real deal.  
  
Roxas freezes. He’s trapped between wanting to be friendly and not wanting to sound like a lunatic because these three don’t _actually_ know him. Unless, at some point—  
  
Hayner grins and holds up four bars of sea salt ice cream. “How’s it hangin’, Roxas?”  
  
He… They… Pence and Olette are smiling at him. He falls back into that pattern before he can stop himself: “Actually, I was just thinking that it’s kinda quiet up here.”  
  
The three plop down beside him on the ledge. Just like they always have. Roxas feels his chest burning. Hayner hands him an ice cream and says: “Well, let’s see if we can fix that.”  
  
And just like that, Roxas’s smile returns. “Sure.”  
  
The ice creams are distributed and peeled open. All four of them take giddy bites at the same time.  
  
Hayner throws his head back towards the sky. “Man, that’s good!”  
  
“Yeah,” Roxas agrees. His voice is mostly breath. These guys are really here… What does he say?  
  
Olette leans over with a small smile at her lips. “Are you surprised to see us?”  
  
Roxas twitches. Well. It’s not like he was trying very hard to hide it. He tries to laugh. “A little, yeah.”  
  
“But we’re friends, aren’t we?” she giggles.  
  
His face falls. He can’t stop it. It’s too unreal. He glances at the other two, at Hayner and Pence, and sees their warm smiles. Their softened eyes and ice cream coated lips. Is it supposed to be this easy? Wasn’t it supposed to be so much work, getting back all of the things he’d lost? Reclaiming the things he never really had?  
  
It’s so warm. He could hold it against his chest forever. It’s all he ever wanted.  
  
Roxas is smiling so hard it hurts. “Of course we are.”  
  
Hayner gestures with his already half-eaten ice cream. “So we agree!”  
  
“Right,” his laugh is disbelieving. How can they be so great? _How_? He has another bite of salty ice cream and watches the glowing sunset, sitting in a place he never thought he’d see again. “Awesome.”  
  
“I’m glad everything worked out!” Pence pumps an arm in the air. “Everyone worked really hard!”  
  
“You guys too?” Roxas asks.  
  
“What else would we do?” he jabs, and takes a bite of ice cream. He chews in silence for a moment or two. “Actually, Roxas… I’m sure it’s obvious to you, but… Sora told us about what happened in the Datascape.”  
  
Of course he did. That’s the only explanation for them being here right now.   
  
“What they did to you,” Hayner clenches his fist. “It’s so messed up. But after we heard everything… well…”  
  
“It kinda felt like we really _were_ friends,” Olette chirps. “And Sora wanted to save you so badly. We got to know you while we helped him do that.”  
  
Roxas is holding the ice cream stick so hard it’s trembling in his fingers. “You guys…”  
  
“Sora comes up with the craziest ideas,” Pence chuckles. “But he’s so earnest, so it’s really hard to not go along with him, ya know?”  
  
“I guess.”  
  
The pause is brief. Hayner takes his last bite of ice cream in the silence and lies down on his back. He lets out a long sigh, “Yeah… it’s too bad Sora can’t sit with us right now.”  
  
Hands twist even tighter.  
  
Pence shakes his head. “I still can’t believe he’s gone.”  
  
Don’t.  
  
“I wonder if there’s some way we could help him too,” Hayner muses quietly.  
  
It _hurts_. Please.  
  
“I heard that Riku was putting together a rescue mission,” Olette adds.  
  
“He better be,” Hayner scoffs as he sits back up. “He’s Sora’s best friend, right? If he wasn’t planning something, I’d have to go pummel him.”  
  
Pence laughs through his nose. “Yeah, right. You’d die. He’d destroy you.”  
  
“Hey, I don’t care about fighting dirty! As long as he gets the message. I’d wait for him to fall asleep, or something.”  
  
Pence’s voice suddenly drops down: “Rumor has it that Riku _never sleeps_.”  
  
Olette starts laughing into her hand.  
  
Hayner shoves Pence’s arm. “Of course he does! He’s human!”  
  
He keeps his voice low: “Rumor has it—” and Hayner shoves him again.  
  
“Knock it off!” he laughs.  
  
“You see? This is why we need Sora! He would’ve backed me up! With at least four different anecdotes that proved my point!”  
  
The three are still laughing and playfully pushing one another. Roxas sits there in-between them, unmoving and staring into the sun. His chest is still burning. His last bite of ice cream melts off of the stick and falls to the ground far below. Still not a winner. The air ripples like waves.  
  
“Roxas, what’s wrong?” Hayner asks, his voice filled with concern.  
  
“Huh?” His eyes refocus, but everything is still blurry. The breeze is now cold against his face because his cheeks are wet. His… wait…  
  
Olette touches his arm. “Are you okay?”  
  
Roxas wipes the tears away with the back of his hand. “I…” Why is his voice so small? “I don’t know.”  
  
“Roxas…”  
  
“I guess I’m… just sad.” And he _knows_ why. What he doesn’t know, is why it took him so long to notice.  
  
x  
  
Riku walks into the grand halls of Disney Castle with no resistance. Not that he expected any. He’s not sure that he would call himself ‘well-known’ in this world, or anything… Maybe ‘easily recognizable.’ He likes the sound of that better.  
  
He finds out that King Mickey is spending some time in his office, and heads that way. At this point, he doesn’t need an invitation. Not even a request.  
  
It _would_ be pretty uncouth of him to enter without knocking, though. 

“Come in!” Mickey calls from inside. He jumps up from his desk as Riku walks in. “Riku! It’s always good to see you.”

There’s something off about his tone that’s impossible to miss. Riku smiles at him anyway. “You too.”

“Gosh, I hope you’re doing okay after everything that’s happened.” His gaze is entirely sincere, if not a little troubled. “To tell the truth, I heard about what you said to Master Yen Sid yesterday.”

Of course. He’s not surprised at all. “You did?”

The King nods. “Yeah. So I’m sure you’re here to ask for my help. You want to figure out what happened to Sora. But the thing is… I can’t. I can’t help you.”

It’s like a punch in the gut. “You can’t?”

“You see, there’s really nothing I can do,” Mickey explains with a clear grimace on his face. “As a king, my duty is to this world; and as a Keyblade Master, my duty is to ensure the balance of all the worlds, and fight against whatever threatens that balance. But right now? The worlds are at balance. Light and Darkness exist together, as close to equal as I’ve ever seen. I have to help maintain that.” There’s a short pause. Mickey stares him down. “And so do you.”

Riku’s lips are sewn shut. Everything he wants to say—to _shout—_ is kept inside. He knows Mickey doesn’t deserve that amount of anger and frustration. He’d lost his cool in front of Yen Sid earlier, and he can’t find it in himself to regret it. However, if he lost it in front of Mickey right now, he’s sure he’d be mortified.

Mickey takes his silence as a response. “For all we know, this balance is a result of what Sora did, and if we reverse it, we’ll be reversing the state of the worlds. That’s not what we should be doing  as Keyblade Masters .” He’s met with nothing but more silence. A solemn smile ripples across his face, and he steps a little closer. “I know what you’re thinking,” he says, making Riku flinch. “You want to say that we don’t know that for sure, that it was Sora’s  _act_ that brought balance, not his absence.”

He nods slowly. “Yeah. I think so.”

“And you might be right. We just don’t know,” Mickey admits.

“So _why_?”

“Because we don’t know. We don’t know what will happen if we find Sora, or if we’ll be able to bring him back to this side. It could have some very grave consequences.”

“You’re saying I should give up because it _might_ disrupt the balance?”

Mickey chortles a bit. “I know better than to tell you that. I’m saying that  _I_ can’t help you, but I know how you feel.” His somber look returns. “It isn’t fair like this. Sora worked so hard... I think he deserves better. He should be able to enjoy this victory with the rest of us.”

“Yeah, he should.” His voice is barely there.

“Ya know, it’s funny, when we say ‘one for all,’ we don’t mean it like this.” Riku doesn’t say anything to that. Mickey lets the silence settle for a while. “I have to agree with Master Yen Sid, and say that upholding the balance is the most important thing, but I won’t tell you to give up on finding your friend. I could never tell you that. I won’t stop you from following your heart, even if I’m unable to lend you a hand along the way this time. Just promise you’ll be careful, okay? You’re both good friends of mine. I couldn’t stand to lose both of ya.”

“I,” Riku stammers. It’s so much to take in. “I understand, Your Ma… Mickey.” He inwardly curses himself. Why did his tongue choose now, of all times, to relapse into that old slip-up?

Mickey ignores it with grace. His smile is anything but happy. “I’m sorry, Riku. Good luck.”

He wants to say that it’s okay—that it’s no big deal, but he can’t. The words just won’t form. They get stuck in his throat until all he can do is swallow them back down. So he nods in silence. He understands Mickey’s position, he truly does, but he can’t agree with it. It leaves a bad taste in his mouth.

Even so, Mickey’s made his decision: Neutrality.

After the way Yen Sid reacted, Riku decides that it could’ve been worse.

There’s nothing left to say, so he takes his leave. Mickey doesn’t offer to see him out, or any other frivolous pleasantries. He lets Riku go stalking down the wide, grand corridors of the castle with nothing but his disappointment.

He takes the long way around, skirting the greenery of the courtyard, and walking through the silence of a side hall. For a while, there’s only the dull tap of his heels on the floor.

He needs to reevaluate a few things. If Mickey won’t help, this might be harder than he thought. But that’s not to say that he doesn’t have _any_ help. Ventus and Lea have already agreed to lend their support. Vanitas agreed… in his own way. With lots of coercing. And Kairi is a guarantee, so Riku isn’t too worried about being shorthanded. Plus, there are countless others to consider. Xion and Naminé, for starters, and of course there’s—

“Hey!”

It’s a harsh whisper, in a voice Riku doesn’t immediately recognize. He stops in his tracks, glancing over his shoulder.

“Over here!”

Again. It sounds so far away. Or maybe…

Wait. He knows that voice.

Two pairs of hands grab his arms and drag him through the nearest door. “In _here_ , dummy!” It’s a different, scratchier voice this time. Yet it’s unmistakable in every way.

Donald and Goofy throw Riku into a nearby  empty ballroom. “What are you doing?”  he demands with little malice.

Donald quickly shushes him, leaning out of the door to make sure no one saw them. After a moment, he clicks the door in place. “The coast is clear.”

“Sorry about draggin’ you around like that,” Goofy chuckles, “but we wanted to have a chat with ya.”

Riku can’t argue against their timing.  “ That’s funny, because I was just thinking about talking with the two of you.”

“Well then it’s a good thing we found each other!” he smiles.

“Keep it down, numbskull!” Donald shakes his fist. “We gotta keep this quiet.”

“Oh. Right.”

“Why is that?” Riku asks.

“The King’s done told us not to interfere with your plans,” Goofy explains. “We’re not supposed to help ya or stop ya or anything.”

“Yeah… So I’ve heard.”

“But the thing is… we don’t wanna do nothin’.” 

“Huh?”

“Sora’s our pal too. We wanna try ‘n help bring him back,” Goofy declares.

Donald nods his head. “Right. But we can’t just go against the King’s orders.”

Interesting. Riku folds his arms over his chest. “So, what are you suggesting?”

“We’ll have to help from the sidelines for now,” Donald mutters. “We can’t just hop in the Gummi Ship and fly off willy-nilly anymore. We’re stuck here until the King changes his mind.”

It’s Goofy’s turn to nod. “ Until then, we’re gonna search this world top-to-bottom for clues on how to find Sora.”

Riku narrows his eyes before he can stop himself. “You really think you can find clues here?”

“Of course. The library here at the castle is top-notch. Chock-full of information His Majesty has collected over the years.” He readjusts his hat proudly. “I’d say only Merlin or Master Yen Sid could have a better collection. Wouldn’t ya say, Donald?”

“Maybe,” the duck concedes. “But you should see Scrooge’s library archives. They’re ridiculous!”

“Really? Ya think he’ll let us have a peek at some of them?”

“Not without a fight, he won’t.”

Riku  finds himself smiling. “Thanks, you two.” 

“Well, of course!” Goofy laughs. “What’re friends for?”

“We’ll let you know when we find something,” Donald assures, and holds out his hand.

Goofy extends his hand as well. “We’ll have Chip ‘n Dale diggin’ through the data archives for ya, too.”

“We won’t rest until Sora’s back home, safe and sound.”

Riku takes up both of their hands in a firm shake. “You’re right. We won’t.” There’s no mistaking the conviction in their eyes. _Finally_ , Riku thinks, someone else wants this as badly as he does. “Thanks for all your help, and try not to get caught.”

x

Naminé is next on his mental checklist. According to Lea, she’s currently taking shelter in Twilight Town, at an inn near the station. Riku opens a path back onto the familiar, orange-tinted streets.

An inn, huh? He thinks he remembers seeing it. It’s a fairly unassuming place. Somehow, it seems to fit Naminé perfectly. He makes his way towards the train station, weaving through alleyways, and mingling alongside the bright chimes of the clock tower. As he walks, he wonders if Xion has also chosen to stay in this world for a while. He could talk with her too, while he’s here.

No. He shakes the thoughts from his head. That’s pointless. He’s already left that job to Lea, along with talking to the rest of the old Organization. Although Riku really doubts any of them will be willing to help in an effort to find Sora. So far, the results haven’t been promising. Even Roxas…

It doesn’t matter. He’ll reach for whatever help he can get, and if he ends up with none, then that’s fine too.

Right now he needs to focus on the task at hand. He’s here for Naminé. To talk with her. Even if she’s incapable of jumping out onto the front lines with him, she’s smart. Wise, even. There’s no doubt in his mind that she can help him find his first steps. That is, if she’s actually willing to lend a hand.

The buildings are becoming more clustered. He must be getting close.

Then Riku turns the corner and Roxas is standing there. He doesn’t look pleased, either.

This is unexpected. But before he can even question it, Roxas blurts out: “I’ll help you.”

Riku watches him for several seconds. The scowl on his face—the fire in his eyes. Roxas isn’t lying. How strange. Riku rolls his shoulders back, dropping the defenses he didn’t even realize he’d put up. “What changed your mind?”

“I can’t just sit around and do nothing,” Roxas grumbles. “Even though I _want_ to. I finally have my life back. I just want to live it. But still… Sora fought so hard for me. For my right to exist… I can’t stand the thought of him disappearing like this. It—it isn’t fair. He has the right to exist too. The least I can do is try to get him back. If I ever want to repay him… that’s what I’ll have to do.”

“So you’ll help me?”

“It’s not for you,” he mutters. “It will never be for you.”

Riku doesn’t miss the edge in his voice. Roxas isn’t even looking at him. He doesn’t want to. There’s something getting in the way. Is it the blonde’s pride? Or something else? “Doing this—finding Sora and bringing him back—it’s not going to be easy.”

“I know.”

“So I need to make sure of something. Roxas, will you work with me?”

“I just said that I would.”

“But will you really?” he pushes. “To be honest, I know you don’t like me. Actually, you might even hate me.” Roxas says nothing. “I need to know if you can move past that. I need to know if I can count on you.”

Roxas finally looks at him. That glare is like a knife. “Are you saying I shouldn’t hate you?”

“No, you have every right to hate me. After all, I’m the one who took everything away from you.” He speaks with no inflection. It only forces Roxas’s hands into fists. “But for me, it was something I had to do. I don’t like the things I’ve done, but I’ll never apologize for them. It was the only way to save Sora. It wasn’t out of malice. You’d do the same thing to save Lea, wouldn’t you?” Roxas doesn’t answer, not that Riku expected him to. “I feel a lot of ways about what happened back then, but sorry isn’t one of them.”

They stare each other down for a long time. Roxas is seething.

No, wait—. Riku can’t stop his face from falling. What is this?

Roxas bursts out laughing. “I don’t like you,” he gasps. “I _really_ don’t like you. But I just can’t hate you.” Riku eyes him warily. This was the last thing he expected. It takes a few seconds for Roxas to gather himself. “I want to hate you, but there’s this tiny part of me that just _refuses_ to. It must be some piece of Sora that I haven’t snuffed out yet... I don’t forgive you for what happened, and I don’t like you, but don’t insult me. I can tolerate you long enough to see this through. I’ll give it my all, even if I am fighting next to you.”

Riku nods. That’s all he can ask for. “Thanks, Roxas.”

The blonde scowls at him. “Don’t thank me. It’s not for you.”

As if that matters.

x  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The premise of this fic operates under the assumption that, by the end of KH3, Xehanort is defeated and everyone is saved… except for Sora. Xehanort is defeated because it’s Disney. Sora is the only casualty because it’s Nomura.
> 
> My roommate and I have been planning this fic for literal years, ever since one of us asked the question: “What if Sora gets Godoka’d?” To be “Godoka’d” is, basically, to willingly turn into a concept. I won’t reveal too many details now, because that’s what the rest of the fic is for!
> 
> I wanted to have it finished and posted before KH3, and since I started writing it before we had ANY official confirmation, I thought: “Oh, we’ve got plenty of time. It’s KH3, after all.” And then Nomura was like: “Hahaha bitch you thought.”
> 
> So, here I am, posting the first chapter RIGHT BEFORE KH3 DROPS OH MY GOD. I wanted to have it out in the world beforehand. Just in case ANYTHING that we’ve planned in this fic actually happens, so we’ll be able to say that we /fucking called it/.  
> This fic is also really important to me for a bunch of personal reasons that I won’t get into right now. I want to talk so much about this ughhh but I need to actually post things first. I’ll be working like mad to get the beginning finished so we can dive right into the good shit!
> 
> Let’s go!


	2. The Princess

**2**  
  


Riku leans forward in his chair, propping his elbows onto his knees. She already knows why he’s here. Of course she does.

Naminé carefully twirls her pencil between two fingers. “It was Sora’s decision to make.”

“Yes, and he made it for a _reason_. To bring balance. To end everyone’s suffering,” he speaks his planned words slowly, with just a touch of insistence. “But it didn’t work. The suffering hasn’t ended.”

“You mean _your_ suffering hasn’t ended,” her voice is stern, contrasting against her gentle air. Accusing eyes stab clean through Riku’s prepared script.

He swallows back his words. Oh well. There’s no need to stretch things out anymore. Not here. “Are you going to help or not?”

She shakes her head. “I cannot give you the answers you want. I’m sorry.” Again, huh? He could sigh into his hands. “I said I would honor Sora’s decision and I plan to stand beside that. It’s the least I can do for him now. After all, I know what it’s like for no one to respect your wishes. Back then, Sora was the only one who respected mine. He didn’t undermine me, or even blame me. So I will do the same for him. I can’t help you, Riku. Not with this.”

He shifts uneasily in his seat. Aggravation bubbles in his chest, but Naminé’s obvious sorrow keeps it subdued. It’s just enough. He knows he can’t be angry with her. He shouldn’t be.

He is, but it’s unfair to her. He won’t blame her. He bites down on his frustration. Naminé doesn’t deserve it.

“Oh yes,” she suddenly says, as if she just remembered she left the kettle on. Riku doesn’t have the chance to look puzzled before she turns to him and bows, “thank you for saving me before.”

She’s completely sincere, and it’s so unexpected that he isn’t quite sure he heard her correctly. “Huh?”

“It seems so long ago now. I know it must be odd—but I don’t think I had the chance to properly thank you before, so… Thank you, Riku. Between you and Lea, I was saved from Castle Oblivion.”

He stares at her for a long time. “You say you’re grateful, and I believe you, but even so… you still refuse to help me reach Sora.”

She nods deeply. “I’m sorry.”

Riku rubs his hands over his face and sighs. Silence worms its way between them like an uninvited guest. She doesn’t volunteer anything. There’s nothing left for her to justify. It takes a few moments of him staring at the ceiling through his fingers for him to concede. He sits up and finally meets Naminé’s sullen gaze. “I respect your decision,” he says, and stands from his chair and leaves her. The irritation in his voice is just barely noticeable.

Naminé sighs towards the sketchbook in her lap. The sound of the closing door is soft and final. Her hands deftly continue scratching lines on the page as if they were never interrupted at all. The strokes of her pencil create the image of a large wardrobe surrounded by piles of books. Her eyes soften. The doors of the wardrobe are shut.

x

Lea returns with news that Xion has also refused to help. Her position is similar to Mickey’s: one of non-interference.

Riku tiredly pinches the bridge of his nose. _Of course_.

x

He saved Kairi for last, mostly because he’d have to come back here to talk to her. Even though he’s finally come to terms with this place, he knows this is his home, but without Sora here it’s just an empty shell.

If Sora was merely absent, it wouldn’t be a big deal. But he’s gone entirely, and Riku can still see his shadow lurking in the empty spaces left behind. The bare branch. The pristine, undisturbed sand. The hollow silence of the constant breeze floating in from over the ocean.

It’s just not _whole_ anymore. He knew it wouldn’t be.

He decides to get out of here as soon as possible. Home does nothing but remind him of everything that’s still missing.

He finds Kairi at the usual place. Her house. Well. The Mayor’s House, which is now Her House after she washed up here all those years ago. As organic as any other palm on the beach. She could belong nowhere else.

When she opens the front door and sees him standing there, her reddened eyes grow wide with relief. “You’re okay,” she gasps. She darts forward and hugs him tight. Just for a moment.

Riku did not expect this. He doesn’t know what to do.

Kairi holds onto both of his hands. “I was so worried. I thought you made it out okay, but then you didn’t come home…” She swats his arm. “Where have you been, Riku?!”

“I’ve… well… everywhere,” he stammers. What kind of response is that? “Sorry.”

That answer doesn’t seem to satisfy her, either. Her lips stay pursed with annoyance, but her eyes betray her. They’re still red and swollen from crying.

Of course they are. What did he expect? What is he supposed to say?

Kairi drags him inside by the wrist. She doesn’t need him to say anything. The main room is a little more disheveled than usual. It looks lived-in. Blankets wadded up on one end of the sofa. Empty glasses standing beside the sink in the kitchen. There’s an empty box of tissues on the coffee table. The wastebasket is also empty beside it, as if she were trying to hide any evidence. But it’s already obvious. “Sorry about the mess,” she tries to laugh, but can’t. “I haven’t… really felt like cleaning up.”

He can understand why. “It’s fine. I get it.”

“Do you want anything?”

“No. It’s okay.”

She only hums, and fidgets awkwardly in the center of the room. Anxious hands fiddle with the hem of her skirt. She doesn’t know whether to sit, stand, or break down and cry.

Riku stands there in much the same way, although entirely motionless. Kairi can tell he came here to say something. She can see it eating him up inside.

But that could also be the grief tearing him apart. It’s written all over his face.

“How are you holding up?” she asks quietly. Her smile is faltering.

“I’ve been better,” he says.

She just nods. She expected an answer like that. Something blunt and closed-ended. “Yeah… Me too.”

He doesn’t say anything else, either. The silence is unbearable. An entire piece of their conversation is missing. A phantom limb of their friendship.

Kairi can’t stand it. “Are you going to be okay?”

His fists clench tightly by his sides. He doesn’t answer for a long time. Is he trying to figure out what to say? In the end, he ignores her concern: “We need to figure out a way to fix this.”

“Huh?”

“Lea, Roxas, Ventus, and Vanitas have already agreed to help,” he continues. “So, maybe if we talk with them we’ll be able to come up with a plan.” He doesn’t give her the chance to respond, and moves to the door. “Most of them are in Twilight Town now, so we can—”

“What are you talking about? I’m not going with you.”

He stops dead in his tracks. “What?”

“I’m… not helping you with this.” This doesn’t feel right. This is awful. Her heart is aching like it never has before. She doesn’t want to just stand around and wait anymore. But she still can’t shake this feeling… This sense of dread sitting on her shoulders. The voice in her head shouting _No! D_ _on’t do it! Stop this!_

Riku’s face is completely blank. Her words are so outlandish to him that he can’t even comprehend them.

And this pain in her chest… It won’t go away. “Honestly, I wish everyone would stop bringing it up. It still hurts, remembering that he’s gone. It’s kinda hard to move on when I’m constantly reminded of it.”

“What do you mean ‘move on’? We need to fix this. We _can_ fix this.” There’s nothing. “Kairi, you can’t just give up.”

“That’s not what I’m doing. I’m just accepting what happened. Accepting Sora’s choice.”

“’Choice’?” he scoffs. “He had no idea what he was doing, what the consequences would be, or anything. He jumped in, and now he’s gone. You really think disappearing was his intention? We have to go get him back.”

“It’s impossible...”

“What makes you so sure?”

She shakes her head. “If you drag Sora back here, everything he did will be pointless.”

That  puzzled , blank expression turns to steel. He crosses his arms, and shuts her out. “You keep saying things like that, but I still don’t see any  _proof_ .”

“We’re all just guessing, Riku!” she snaps. “You think you’re so right, but you don’t have any proof either!” That… Where did that come from? And judging from the look on Riku’s face, he’s asking himself the same question. Kairi takes a deep breath. “Look, I… I’m upset too. Of course I’m not happy about it. Sora and I… there’s no way you can understand the kind of connection we had. Do you have any idea how much I’ve cried? But I’m trying to live with it. I’m taking my time. But you’re so fixated on what _could be_ that you’re making it harder on yourself. You’ll never move on if you don’t let go.” He stares at her for such a long time, lips shaping words that never form. His face is slightly twisted, like he’s in pain. Kairi is sure that he is. Sora was… his everything.

Eventually, his eyes cloud over with confusion. “Why would I ever let go?” he mumbles. “It won’t change anything.”

“Some things just can’t be changed.”

“But how do you _know_?” he challenges. 

Her hand curls over her heart. “It’s a… sort of feeling. We Princesses of Heart are pretty in-tune with the Light, you know?”

Did he just scoff at that? “Forgive me if I’m a little skeptical of some vague, ephemeral  _feeling_ of yours.”

“You’re impossible,” she sighs, expression hardening. Riku meets her stare in silence. He doesn’t have anything left to say. He’s still set on bringing Sora back, even if it destroys him. Even if it destroys everything.

Well, if he won’t listen to reason, then maybe… she should just knock him down.

She huffs, “It’s pointless… But I guess it’s like a crutch for you, huh?”

“… What?”

“This is just something else for you to get stuck on,” she mutters beneath her breath.

“What do you mean?”

“You’re obsessive,” she snaps. “You always have been. You were obsessed with that book series when we were ten. You were _obsessed_ with getting off of the island. You were _obsessed_ with being better than Sora. You were _obsessed_ with putting him back together. And you were _obsessed_ with fighting off the darkness. It can be a great weapon for you, but right now it’s a huge, glaring _weakness_.” Riku is gobsmacked. He can’t speak. Kairi is unsure if he’s even breathing. “And now you’re becoming obsessed with this. I’m afraid of what might happen if you do. I know what you’re capable of. You threw our entire world away to satisfy your obsession! So what will you give up to reach your goal this time? Do you really think Sora would want that?” Desperation grips her heart. Why does she want this so badly? “As your friend, I’m begging you, _let this go_.”

He blinks slowly at her for a long time. Those words are whirling around in his head. For a second, Kairi honestly believes that she managed to reach him. But then she notices the fists clenched by his sides, the narrow edge of his glare, and she knows he’s not finished. “I’m doing this with you, or without you—without anyone, if I have to. Will you help me or not?” She only purses her lips. “If you truly care about Sora, you’ll know in your heart what the right thing to do is.”

No. There’s a fluttering in her chest. It’s almost like panic. She couldn’t do it. She couldn’t stop him. Her voice is small against the silence between them. “I won’t help you.”

And that’s it. The look of betrayal that passes over Riku’s face is impossible to ignore. His laugh is harsh and disbelieving. “You’re right. You and Sora have a relationship that I’ll never understand. Because I’d never abandon him.” His words land like darts, pinning her to the spot. She can’t do anything as he turns his back on her and slams the door shut behind him.

The pictures on the wall tilt from the reverberations. Kairi starts to cry.

Riku stands on the other side of the door, hearing her sobs and wrestling with every impulse in his body screaming at him to turn around—to apologize. But he doesn’t. He storms away and doesn’t look back.

x

“Hey, Lea?” Roxas calls as they make their way down the shady streets to their usual hangout spot on the clock tower.

Lea glances over. He’s toting a plastic bag full of ice creams—mostly sea salt flavoured ones. “What’s up?”

His hands tighten in his pockets. “I just thought you should know… you were right.”

“Was I?” He’s already grinning like a fiend.

“Yeah… I decided to help Sora after all,” he admits.

“I knew you would,” Lea says, and claps his hand on Roxas’s back. “Really, I can’t believe you ever doubted me in the first place.”

“Well, it was weird for me.”

He takes a moment to consider that. “What do you mean?”

Roxas grits his teeth. How does he explain this? “You know how Sora would always preach about ‘following your heart,’ and all that?”

“Are you kidding? It was like his catchphrase,” he jests.

“Well, right now my heart is screaming at me. Telling me what an idiot I am. It’s saying I should mind my own business and stay out of it.” He drags his free hand through his hair, plucking the thoughts by the roots. “Even though I know that’s not what I’m supposed to be feeling. I’m supposed to be angry, and sad, right? What happened to Sora is unfair. He deserves better than that—I know he does, but…” He shuts his eyes, and turns his attention inward. He listens so carefully to the faintest of words. “It’s like my heart has two voices. One is saying I need to help, but the other one is screaming ‘No’ so loudly that I can barely hear what the first one is saying. It’s strange. And why… I hesitated to help.”

“So, you’re saying you’re conflicted?” Lea offers.

But Roxas shakes his head. “It’s not like that. It’s something else… Something I can’t really explain…”

“Have you ever felt something like it before?”

“Yeah, actually…” He splays a hand over his chest again, as if to touch his own heart. “If I had to compare it to anything, it would be… back when Sora and I were separate, but not whole. We were still connected to each other. We could still _feel_ each other. It’s kind of like that. Like someone else…” he trails off. He doesn’t know how to explain it, after all. He ends up shaking his head in confused defeat. “But I don’t know what that means, or why I have such a bad feeling about all of this.”

Lea shrugs a shoulder. “Maybe it’s a premonition.”

“C’mon, don’t wish that upon us,” Roxas’s laugh is nothing but breath. “This whole situation is bad enough.”

“You think so?” he muses.

“Huh?”

“I mean, think about it, Roxas. Compared to how things were before, I’d say we’ve got it pretty good. Heck, I’m sure there are some people out there who’d say things have never been better.”

“Well, they’re wrong,” he mutters.

“Oh, yeah?”

Roxas stares up at the clock tower, looming over them as they approach. “None of that matters. It’s not about the rest of the worlds anymore.” Then he snorts, “Well, for me, it was never about them anyway. I’ve never fought for the sake of other worlds. It’s always been personal.”

Lea lightly punches his shoulder. “Same here.”

“And it’s the same now. I’m gonna follow this heart towards what it tells me is right.”

“Sounds like a solid plan to me.”

“I think so.”

Lea doesn’t let the silence settle for very long. “So what’d I tell ya? I knew you’d change your mind!” he chuckles as he drops an arm over Roxas’s shoulders.

Roxas tries to scowl, but he can only laugh. “C’mon, get off,” and he shrugs off the rough embrace.

The redhead is still grinning. “I knew you’d finally decide what was right.”

“I guess you did,” he admits like a sigh. “I just wish I knew why I feel so anxious.”

“I’m sure you’ll figure it out as we go.”

“Is that another prophecy of yours?” Roxas smirks.

Lea merely tilts his head. “Actually, yes. Yes, it is.”

“The Great Lea: Seer of All Things,” he laughs.

“Damn right,” he nods. “Naminé’s got nothing on me.”

That only makes Roxas laugh harder.

x

Riku has trouble falling asleep that night.

He can’t wrap his mind around it. He still doesn’t understand why Kairi refused to help. She was the obvious choice, wasn’t she? She should’ve been the first to join Riku’s side and help find Sora.

So why isn’t she?

What about their relationship? That unseverable bond she and Sora share? She’s not trying to save him. She’s even refusing to help.

Naminé, he can understand. Xion as well. Despite their connection to Sora, they still consider the risk to be too great. He doesn’t agree with them, but he understands them.

But Kairi? It doesn’t make any sense.

Why is Riku the only one fighting so hard to fix this? She should be fighting even harder, right? _She’_ _s_ the one that’s supposed to care so much. _She’s_ the one that’s supposed to have all these feelings for Sora. _She’s_ the one that’s supposed to be in love with him.

Wait.

Just what is he implying? Ridiculous. He tries to laugh it off, but his breath gets tangled in his throat. Barely anything sputters out. Why? The room is suddenly so small. It’s closing in around his chest.

_Wait_ .

The only word on his mind. It plunges through him like a knife. He can’t breathe. His body turns cold as frustration recedes into a fathomless ocean of fear.

No.

That can’t be right. It can’t—

Oh, no.

“Fuck.”

Riku doesn’t sleep at all that night.

x  
  
Sora’s memorial is at dawn on the beach with lots of candles and paper flowers and tear-soaked faces. Riku doesn’t go. There’s no point in mourning. Mourning doesn’t get things done.  
  
Besides, Sora isn’t dead. He isn’t gone forever. Riku is going to make sure of it. It’s not a loss—it’s a setback. He’s going to pull Sora back through that door, even if it’s the last thing he ever does.  
  
x

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It sounds like Riku is *throws on sunglasses* gonna think twice.
> 
> I am not emotionally ready for this game, you guys. I’m gonna need a recovery period. And maybe some Phoenix Down. Oof.  
> Well. At least the beginning of this fic is finished now. Time for things to really get moving!
> 
> And don’t worry, I didn’t lie. This fic is still Gen, I promise. Riku has a lot to deal with. On a lot of different levels. Who gave me permission to write him in the canon-universe? I’m just gonna break him.


	3. Two Truths and a Lie

 

**3**

Ventus never thought that he’d come to the library of his own volition. Before, he only ever came here when Master Eraqus demanded it, or when Aqua would guilt him into actually studying for his tests. But now, he has his own questions. Questions that no one can answer. And in his desperation, he ends up in the bright, spacious library in the Land of Departure.

Dust motes dance in shafts of sunlight like his memories, glimmering and barely seen. He can only reach out his hand to grasp them before they swim away. Days when he was barely responsive after his and Vanitas’s separation, and Aqua would read him stories and legends from the shelves of this library. Nights when he fell asleep against Terra’s shoulder during one of their many study parties.

Ven meanders through the aisles and tables like his thoughts, fingers running along the spines of the books. He turns towards the far end of the library and spies a certain blue-haired figure leaning over a mountain of books. One lies open on the table beneath her intense gaze. “Aqua?”

She jerks and slams the book shut. Wide eyes find him standing there and she releases her breath. “Oh! Ven. You startled me.”

“Sorry about that,” he chuckles. “Since when are you so jumpy?”

“I guess I was just lost in my thoughts.” Her fingers carefully trace the cover of the old, leather-bound tome.

Ven can’t miss the tension in her face. He presents his best grin. “So, what are you studying?”

“Huh?”

“All these books,” he points, and strolls up to the table. There’s a thin book on the top of the nearest stack that reads: _Falling in Reverse; The Role of Light in the Darkness of Sleep_. Ven has a headache already. “I haven’t seen you like this since before your Mark of Mastery. What are you researching?”

Aqua slowly turns the book over in her hands and shows him the cover. _The True Light_.

“What’s this?”

“I think that this may hold some clues to finding Sora,” she murmurs.

“What!?” Ven yells, and Aqua quickly shushes him. “You’re gonna help find him?”

“I don’t think it’s my place to act as brazenly as you and the others… But I do want to help any way I can.” Her fingers tighten over the book, leather groaning in protest. “Sora has helped me so much. He and Riku saved me when I was at my weakest. I want to help and save them, too. I have my duties as a Keyblade Master, and the Keeper of this world, but…” Her thoughts are a whirlwind in her head. She can’t seem to grasp them anymore. “More than anything, I want to understand what happened.”

Ven nods firmly. He knows the feeling. After everything, he and everyone else thought they’d seen everything the worlds could throw at them, so what happened to Sora is frustrating enough to feel like despair. “And you think this book will help?” he asks.

“It’s the most interesting one I’ve found so far. It claims that the natural Light we fight so hard to protect may actually be artificial, or just incomplete. That there’s a true, pure Light that remains out-of-reach.”

“You mean, like Kingdom Hearts?”

“Maybe so, but the author is very vague.” She opens the cover and absentmindedly flips through a few pages. It’s all words, no diagrams. “The pages are so worn and creased… like someone else, long ago, combed tirelessly through them. Like they were searching for some kind of secret. I’m hoping I can find it too.” Fingertips linger over the lines of old dog-eared corners and the ghosts of penciled notes in the margins.

“True Light, huh?” He can’t deny that it sounds promising. After all, he and Aqua both saw it. Along with everyone else, after the dust had barely settled and Ven’s pulse was still running a marathon, Sora stepped through a door of blinding white light. Brightness so piercing and overpowering that it stung like needles. And no one has seen him since. “Maybe he was the key, after all,” he muses.

“What do you mean?”

He shakes his head. “Nah, it’s nothing. I’m just thinking of something Master Yen Sid said once. Trying to make sense of it.”

“I hope we can make sense of all of this soon.”

“If Riku has anything to say about it, it’ll be sooner rather than later,” Ven chuckles.

A thin smile breaks over Aqua’s face. “You’re right. If anyone can find Sora, it’s him.”

“I actually came in here to look for clues, but it looks like you beat me to the punch!”

Her laugh is soft. “I suppose so.”

“Yeah. Thanks, Aqua!” Ven smiles a big and as bright as he can, until Aqua finally relents and smiles back.

x

The old mansion stands before him like it always has: desolate and dilapidated, yet stirring a feeling of hope beneath his heartache.

Well. Sora is gone, and probably needs help, so it makes sense that Riku would wander back here as a slave to his old habits.

He even told the others to meet up here. This place must have some kind of connotation of hope within despair, or a release from frustration. He’s not sure how to define it, exactly, but he has to laugh at himself. Only he would ever consider a run-down old mansion something _hopeful._

And it’s not like he can think of anywhere else to go. He’s followed his heart from world to world, but that only served to lead him in circles. He still doesn’t understand. It always worked before. It always worked for Sora.

If he’s going in circles, he’s getting nowhere. And if his heart is leading him nowhere, that must mean Sora is nowhere. Or everywhere.

His face scrunches up. How would that even work?

He pushes the old iron gates open. They groan against the force. Just like they always do.

Riku has dived down for Sora more times than he can count. He’s followed him into the dark and shoved him back to where he needed to be. Going down into the depths… descending is easy. It’s climbing back that’s the hard part. And now, Sora has stepped up onto some higher plane. He’s ascended.

The hard part is now, but if they can just _reach_ Sora, then everything will be alright. The trip back down should be easy.

He makes his way past the crumbling statues and overgrown greenery, but before he can reach the door, three sparks of light drop from the sky and swirl in his vision like stars. Riku takes a step back.

“Wait, wait!” comes a tiny voice, and the sparks burst into shape. Three small women in pink, blue, green, appear in a flash of glimmering light. They each have a pair of wings protruding from their backs and magic wands in their hands. Fairies? Wait…

The lady in blue is clearly panting. “Thank goodness! We made it just in time!”

It takes a moment, but Riku definitely recognizes them. “The Good Fairies?”

“That’s us!” The pink one winks. “Looks like we finally caught up with you!

“But why are you here?”

She turns to the old mansion and raises her wand. “Because we have a gift for you!”

“For me?”

“C’mon, girls!” The other two fairies fall in place beside her. They wave their wands in an identical pattern. Sparks fly like glittering waterfalls, coating the entire mansion in magic.

With as much effort as they’re putting into it, Riku expects some kind of grand transformation, but everything stays the same. The magic starts to dissipate, and nothing happens. “What was that?”

“Looks can be deceiving, dear!” The green one laughs. She flies excitedly to the front door. “Now, come along inside.”

So it’s on the inside, huh? Riku shrugs and follows them in. He takes two steps through the door before he’s nearly mowed down by a walking broom. “What the—?”

He did not expect a change like this. It’s just like at the Mysterious Tower. Mops, brooms, and buckets walk around on their own, cleaning and polishing everything in sight. Debris flies out of broken windows before the glass shards reassemble themselves in the panes. Floating feather dusters brush away the cobwebs in the corners of the crown molding. The doors leading to the other, always inaccessible wings are flung open in a cloud of dust. The brooms quickly sweep that up, too.

It only takes a minute. The mansion is immaculate. Pristine in all of its antique glory. Only the exterior is left untouched and inconspicuous.

“What’s all this?” Riku asks with disbelieving breath.

The fairy in blue swoops down to him. A cattish grin tugs at her lips. “You’re here fairly often, aren’t you?”

“I… I guess I am.”

“And you’re going to find Sora?”

“Yeah.” There’s no question.

The Green Fairy adjusts her hat. “All the more reason to use this place again.” Then she pauses, “You _were_ planning on using it, weren’t you?”

The thought had indeed crossed his mind. He gives a halfhearted nod.

“Though this time, dear, do work under tidier conditions,” the Pink Fairy scolds him.

Riku stands incredulous. He really doesn’t know why they’re doing this. What do they get out of it? Have they even been officially introduced? The three clearly know Sora, but that has no bearing on Riku.

The Blue Fairy shoves her green companion. “Now, look. You’ve confused the poor boy!”

“ _I_ have?”

The Pink Fairy shushes them. Her expression turns soft. “Truth be told, we heard all of the commotion inside the Mysterious Tower that day. Yen Sid’s indifferent stance is… disappointing, yet unsurprising.”

“So we decided to help,” the Green Fairy says. “It may not be much, but consider it a vote of confidence from us!”

The Blue Fairy is pouting. “Our magic can only do so much across worlds, it seems.”

Riku shakes his head. “But I don’t understand… Why are you doing all of this?”

“You see, dear, our magic can only do things that create joy. It’s powered by love!” the pink one exclaims. Riku almost flinches.

The Green Fairy hovers close to him. “And before, at the Tower, we could hear it in your voice.”

He gulps. “What did you hear?”

“Your desperation. Your passion… You care deeply for Sora, don’t you?”

“He—he’s my best friend.”

“And without him, you feel like you have no place left to go.”

_Oh._ “I…”

The Blue Fairly waves her own wand in a flourish. “So, we decided to give you one! After all, everyone needs a place of respite.”

So that’s it. His smile is bitter-tasting. How long has he been clenching his fists? They’re aching. “I…” What does he say? ‘Thank you’? ‘I can’t believe this’? I don’t deserve this’? ‘I’ll definitely get Sora back’? He could say all of those things, and more, but _which one_?

The Green Fairy stops directly in front of him. “There’s no need to thank us, dear.” A phantom weight lifts from Riku’s shoulders. “Just keep fighting.”

Riku nods. He can do that.

x

Why is he doing this?

Vanitas keeps asking himself the same question over and over, but he still can’t come up with a good answer. Why is he _helping_? Why did he agree to go along with this hopeless plan?

_Why?_

Well… it’s not like he has anything better to do. But what else is new?

It’s always been like this, hasn’t it?

He’d say it’s because it’s “interesting,” but he can’t even convince himself of that. Running around trying to find Sora’s trail… it’s too much work with too little payoff. Besides, Sora made his choice. What does Vanitas care?

He scowls as he trudges through the woods outside of Twilight Town. “We’ll meet at the old mansion,” Riku had said. Vanitas is still rolling his eyes. What an innocuous place. There’s a vague path carved through the forest towards this mansion, where worn and trampled grass splits to avoid the nosy neighborhood kids that come traipsing through every so often. Vanitas feels the coolness of the shadows seep into his skin. He doesn’t shiver. He’s too accustomed to it for that. Lurking in the shadows will always be his nature. He’s become resigned to that fate.

“Resigned.” He almost laughs. It’s been a while since he’s felt trapped like that. Fate and circumstances were never on his side at all.

He still remembers it clearly. The last time he stood before Sora as an enemy. Before that bastard Xehanort tried to wrestle him out of his own heart. Before he succeeded. Before Sora and Ventus pulled him free.

What was it that Sora had said? That smarmy little runt.

Sora shows up at the Badlands with nothing but his keyblade and his attitude, and Vanitas is aching to tear that stupid grin off of his face. “I really don’t get why you’re doing this,” Sora grumbles.

“It’s not for _you_ to understand,” Vanitas scoffs, his patience quickly wearing thin. “There’s nothing you can do to stop it. The χ-blade _will_ be forged.”

“And just what do you plan to do once you get the χ-blade, huh? You know Xehanort isn’t gonna just let you keep it, right? He’s gonna take it right out of your hands like—”

“ _Of course I know!_ ” he snaps, voice uncontrollable. Immediately, he thinks he could bite off his own tongue for being so careless.

Sora stands there smirking at him. That brat’s smug face… He knows he just found a raw nerve. He’d touched on a subject so jarring and concealed, that even Vanitas had forgotten it existed.

And that stupid face… A face almost identical to his own. How dare he!

_How dare he!_

Sora twirls the keyblade in his hand, unperturbed by the white-hot flames now flaring in Vanitas’s eyes. “So you’re okay with that?”

Vanitas locks his teeth into place, saying nothing. He _won’t_ allow another slip-up.

“You just said you knew what was going to happen, and you’re really okay with that? You’re fine with putting your existence on the line to forge the χ-blade, only for Xehanort to take it away from you?” Nothing. Sora snorts at his silence. “You’re lucky if that’s _all_ he takes from you. But I’m sure you know that too, right?”

That smirk again. Vanitas only wishes to set the kid on fire.

So why won’t his body move?

Sora shakes his head in grand, exaggerated disbelief. “I don’t get it at all. You’re seriously okay with losing your χ-blade _and_ your body? No, it’s even more than that, because you won’ t exist _anywhere_! You’ll become Xehanort! You won’t be you anymore! Everything you’re trying to do right now… you’ll never get to enjoy any of it! I thought you had more pride than that. Can’t you think for yourself?”

“Shut up!”

“Maybe you’re nothing but a tool after all.”

“ _SHUT UP!_ ” Vanitas roars with a wild swing of his blade. “You don’t get it! You don’t understand a damn thing! So don’t you dare stand there and talk like you do, you little twerp! You stumbled into this like some stupid, blind child and you think you have the right to lecture _me_? Don’t make me laugh. I’ll destroy you, right here and now! I’ll cut you to ribbons because _I_ want to!”

Sora drops back into his fighting stance with that infuriating smirk still tugging at his lips. “Right! You want to win! And you want to keep winning! I know you don’t want to lose to Xehanort either. So are you afraid of him or something? Is that why you don’t fight against him?”

“I thought I told you to shut up!” he hisses through clenched teeth.

“I just think it’s a lot of trouble to go through for someone who’s going to turn around and hurt you later.”

“Why you—”

“If you keep jumping at his every order, when are you ever going to do what _you_ want to do? Never?” His laugh is harsh. “Instead of Heartless, I think I should call you the Brainless!”

“I said: shut your damn mouth!”

“You don’t want this.”

Vanitas’s face twists into a nasty snarl. “Who the hell are you to say that? You runt! I’ll shove those words back down your throat! You know _nothing_! You’re at the end of your road, but you’re nothing but another obstacle in my way. I’ll obliterate you right here!”

“So why haven’t you?”

Vanitas stalls. It lasts a fraction of a second. He doesn’t know. “Enough! Spare me your analyzing! You can’t read me! What makes you think you know _anything about me?!_ ”

Sora laughs through his nose, one last time. “Because you’re me.”

The pure and absolute rage that filters into Vanitas’s face at that moment is truly remarkable. Not even Sora anticipated such a fantastic reaction. That, mixed with the utter shock of such a declaration, sends the other boy spinning. He charges at Sora, completely unhinged, swinging his keyblade in sporadic arcs, and not even attempting any higher-level magic. Like a cornered animal, he only seeks to harm and flee. From the fight. From the situation. From Sora. From the truth.

He knew it all along. Of course he did. Vanitas isn’t stupid. Far from it, if he says so himself. But he’s never needed to think too far _beyond_ his short-term goal. Forging the χ -blade is a near-impossible task within itself, and one that he tends to get lost in. In the back of his mind, he noticed when Xehanort always made a p o int to to focus intensely on that goal. And only that goal. He didn’t need Vanitas thinking about anything after that, because Vanitas wouldn’t be the one _thinking_ at all. Not at that point.

It makes his skin crawl to remember it. That damn old man, wanting to use him like an empty vase.

Emptiness, huh?

Vanitas is one literal half of the ultimate blade. And that’s all he’ll ever be.

Nothing more.

Nothing less.

Nothing but _pieces_.

Not even a tool in his own right.

Something incomplete.

Something that shouldn’t exist.

He has to forge the χ-blade. Otherwise, there’s no reason for him to exist at all.

He has no purpose outside of the plan.

He knows this. He’s known for so long. So why does the thought of losing himself, of disappearing and turning into someone else, frighten him so terribly? Why is he shaking down in the darkest recesses of his core, when that was the first thing he ever truly wanted?

It’s been too long. Pieces have eroded and mended. Will he and Ventus even fit together anymore? Can they ever mesh again? Has this all been for nothing?

Dread sprouts like crawling vines. Choking and constricting. The Unversed pour out of him like a cup overflowing.

And the anger. He’s absolutely livid. It’s a feeling he’s familiar with. It’s one of the only things he’s ever known. So he grabs ahold of it to shut out all else, and directs it at this smug brat with the matching face. He smashes that face with lightheaded fervor until it’s completely unrecognizable.

Only, he doesn’t.

The kid is faster than he looks. Vanitas is lacking focus. He could use a Dark Roll or two to make quick work of it, but he’s not thinking of his repertoire. He’s not thinking of magic, or Sora’s uncanny ability to learn move sets on the fly. He’s only thinking of the feeling of his keyblade smashing into that brat’s pretty little head. The flesh and bone giving way to soft insides. Having to yank the blade free from the residual mess. The blood. The spilling light. Where there’s no time to scream before he falls into the darkness of oblivion.

The shock and fear in those blue eyes when he realizes he’s slipped. The contortion of his own pitiful mistake.

The blood. The darkness pooling at his feet. The distinct scent of iron. Rust. Blood. Suffering. Death.

Death.

Just die already!

“ _SUFFER!_ ”

“Are you?”

_Die!_

“You’re hurting, aren’t you?”

Swing. Crash. Sparks.

“Aren’t you!?”

Parry.

Pain.

Everywhere.

This is it.

“Vanitas!”

Then whiteness. It’s blinding. Suffocating.

It stings. Hurts. Blades cut into him. Two. No, three.

Four.

Everything is slowing.

Crawling.

Spinning.

His reflection glares daggers at him.

Wait. That’s not him.

The brat is swathed in white. Blades dance around him. He towers above. The sky is everywhere.

Vanitas vaguely comes to notice the rocks digging into his back.

That face is no longer glaring. It’s solemn. The world comes to a slow, blurry stop. The words, images, whirling around Vanitas’s head burn to ash. His body aches all over.

It hurts.

What.

Is.

“You’re crying.”

Words die.

“You have been. For a while now.”

Aching.

“You don’t want to give up everything.”

Fingers twitch around the empty space where his keyblade used to be.

“You’re too strong for that. I’m not lying, either. You hit really hard.”

He can feel the tears—the shameful—pathetic— _disgraceful tears—_ pouring over his cheeks.

“There’s nothing wrong with wanting to exist.”

He lost. The fight. His mind. His heart. His purpose. Everything. It’s gone.

He lost.

_Failure_.

“Vanitas. You can exist. You can be more than a piece.”

A piece. In every sense of that word.

“I can’t even imagine how you’re hurting. I won’t pretend to. But you have to keep fighting. You have to fight with hope in your heart if you ever want to overcome it.”

He can’t speak. Teeth clench too tightly for even breath to escape.

“If you’ll let me, I’ll help you.”

A scoff. A laugh. A sob.

“So what do you say?”

It hurts. His chest—His heart is aching.

“I know you’re listening.”

His mangled, twisted half of a heart is _burning_.

“Vanitas?”

“I…” His voice is hoarse with pain. The constricting in his chest. He can’t breathe. He can’t— “I want—!” Air hisses through teeth. “—to fight!”

It’s all in the past. Vanitas bites down onto his lip until he tastes blood. He was so weak then. How could he have slipped up so badly, and let Sora drag those emotions out of him like it was nothing? He was played for a fool.

He’d feel embarrassed, but it was only him and Sora in the Badlands that day. And now, there’s no one left to refute the story. Vanitas can carve the truth himself. If any of these idiots would ever give him a chance to do so, anyway. Despite everything that happened, they still treat him like the enemy.

Whatever. Let them think what they want.

Even after Sora’s lecture, Vanitas walked that road on such shaky legs that Xehanort was able to overwrite his consciousness anyway. Locked him deep within the confines of his own fractured heart with nothing but illusions to lead him farther into the labyrinth. He truly never had a chance. But then, Ventus and Sora…

No. Enough. He doesn’t want to dwell on it anymore. The nightmares do that well enough on their own.

How long has he been standing here, glaring at the gates to the mansion?

Again, he has to ask himself: why is he doing this?

Whatever. He steels his face and steps forward. The inside of the mansion is surprisingly incongruent to the weathered exterior. It looks almost new. Vanitas shrugs it off. He’s seen stranger things.

The other four idiots are already here, gathered near the foot of the stairs. They all glance over as Vanitas walks in, only offering acknowledgment as a greeting. Lea and Roxas seem surprised to see him, while Riku is smirking in an extremely punchable way.

Ventus shoots him an uneasy smile. He clearly doesn’t trust Vanitas much at all, but the others trust him even less. If anything, Ventus trusts him out of obligation.

Vanitas clicks his tongue and glances off into the distance. He doesn’t offer them any words, either.

“Like I was saying,” Riku says, projecting a little too far, “we need to decide on a starting point.”

Ventus is the first to speak up: “Sora disappeared through that door of blinding light, right? Why don’t we try asking the Princesses of Heart?”

“Kairi did mention something about the Princesses’ connection to the Light…” There’s a clear grimace on Riku’s face as he says this. “So I was thinking of that too. I think it’s worth searching those particular worlds, at least.”

Roxas laughs through his nose. “And do you know how many Princesses there are? How many there _have been_? Do you really expect us to comb through every world?”

“Of course I don’t,” Riku mutters. “But you saw that door, didn’t you? We’re dealing with some grand and ancient magic, here. Probably as old as the worlds themselves.”

“So, what are you suggesting?”

“There are some worlds that are older than others, going back into the age of fairytales, and they’re all full of magic. Like Enchanted Dominion, or the Castle of Dreams. Haven’t you noticed?”

“Never been,” Roxas huffs.

Ventus takes an excited step forward. “But I have! And I agree with you. There’s so much magic in those worlds. The Dwarf Woodlands, too!” Vanitas is inclined to agree as well.

Riku nods thoughtfully. “They were also some of the first worlds to fall to darkness, back when Ansem and Maleficent were searching for the Princesses of Heart. There has to be a reason for that.”

“Right! Besides, I’ve been to those worlds lots of times, and there’s definitely something… special about them. They all have a deep connection with the Light.”

“And if we’re going to find Sora, we have to follow the Light,” Riku states, and Ventus grins in agreement.

Lea folds his arms over his chest. “When you say it like that, it almost sounds easy.”

Riku clearly stifles a laugh. “Believe me, it won’t be.”

“Of course not,” he laments. “So, we’ve got three worlds to search. Are we splitting up, gang?”

And Ventus immediately hops over and links his arm with Roxas’s. “I pick Roxas!”

Roxas and Lea sputter at the same time: “Huh?”

“What? We haven’t had a chance to hang out or anything yet. Why wouldn’t I want to get to know someone who has the same face as me?”

Vanitas can’t stop himself from scoffing. “Can’t say I relate.”

“We can go to Dwarf Woodlands and talk to Snow!” A shadow falls across Ventus’s face. “But it’s been so long… I wonder if she’ll remember me.”

Roxas finally untangles his arm from his twin’s. “You seem pretty hard to forget.”

“Thanks!” he smiles.

Vanitas shakes his head, muttering beneath his breath about how “that’s not a compliment.”

Lea is only staring at them. He’s having an obvious internal argument with himself on whether or not to be selfish. But really, he’s just pouting. “I guess I can’t argue against that, now, can I?” he grumbles.

Roxas and Ventus both grin up at him, and he clearly can’t take it.

The atmosphere in this room is making Vanitas nauseated. Let’s just get this over with. He gestures towards Lea and Riku with a sharp wave of his hand. “Which leaves you two as the next group. I’ll go by myself.”

Riku looks at him through a soft smirk. The kind of look one would give a child after they’ve said something outlandish. “Vanitas, you really ought to go with one of us.”

That condescending face. Vanitas could really punch him now. “Why? You afraid I’ll go in and destroy everything? Start plunging the worlds into darkness just to spite you?”

“No, it’s because out of all of us, you’re the one least acclimated with Light. Do you even know what we’re looking for?”

“Do _you_?”

Riku’s mouth snaps shut.

“Just go ahead and say it—you don’t trust me to go alone. You only wanted my help in the first place because I have a connection to Sora.” There’s no response. From anyone. Vanitas huffs again, “That, and the extra manpower.”

Ventus steps towards him, concern creasing his face. “Vanitas—”

“I’ll go with Vanitas,” Lea says simply, ignoring everything that just transpired. “I’m used to working with people who don’t want me around, and kids who don’t know how to be people yet. Isn’t that right, Roxas?”

“Can it,” Roxas spits.

“That’s the spirit!”

Vanitas glares. Did all of his protests just get trampled over? “I said I don’t need you.”

Lea just grins. “Yeah? Well I wanna get to know you.”

The words die in his throat. His mouth moves in silence.

“It’s settled, then. We’ll go together.”

What is going on?

“I’ll handle the Castle of Dreams,” Riku offers before the tension shatters. “It’s… closer to my area of expertise.”

“Fair enough,” Lea nods. “That leaves Enchanted Dominion to me n’ Vanitas.”

Vanitas wants to fight it, but he has no words left. He resists the urge to sigh, or to draw his blade and take out his frustration. He could make them understand that way. But he doesn’t do anything. Is it time to be dragged along by someone else’s plan again? He can always ditch Lea later. It’s no big deal. Really. “Fine,” he mutters. “I’ll go with Lea.” The others appear annoyingly shocked. A shrug rolls from his shoulders. “It’s just as well, out of everyone in this room, I hate him the least.”

Lea splays a dramatic hand over his chest. “That’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said about me.”

Roxas rolls his eyes. “That’s the _only_ thing he’s ever said about you.”

“Details, details,” he waves them away. “So, Riku, are you sure you’ll be alright on your own?”

Riku shrugs lightly. “It’s been a while… but honestly, I’m used to it.”

Lea makes a face. “Well, that’s pretty bleak.”

“I don’t disagree,” he chuckles. “But since there’s an odd number of us, we don’t really have a choice.”

“Ya got me there…”

Riku watches as Lea runs a nervous hand through his hair. The gesture and sentiment send a twinge of pain through his chest. He forces a smirk. “Since when are you so worried about me?”

“Huh?”

“You’re starting to sound like Sora…” He regrets saying it as soon as the words leave his mouth. The silence is a lead blanket. No one even breathes.

Lea snorts after the shortest eternity: “More like I’m starting to understand _why_ Sora is so worried about you all the time.”

“Right,” Riku mumbles. He suddenly wants to leave. To go ahead and disappear and work on his own. He hasn’t felt this urge in a long time. A year, maybe.

“It’ll be fine,” Ven suddenly says. He crosses his arms, so proud and bright. It’s painfully familiar. “We got this.”

Roxas smiles and nods alongside him. “Yeah.”

Vanitas is still frowning, but he doesn’t argue. Maybe that’s just his pouting face—an expression of frustration and begrudging agreement—but Riku can’t be sure. His only basis for Vanitas… is Sora. Is that good enough?

For now, it’ll have to do. Riku agrees, and the groups go their separate ways.

x

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had to re-watch like half of Sleeping Beauty so I could remember the Good Fairies’ speech patterns. Ughhhh.
> 
> *Pinches Vanitas’s cheeks* Just look at this tsundere garbage boi. I can’t wait to write you out of your archetype!  
> Ah!! I’ve had Vanitas’s flashback(s) written for so loooong…! I finally get to share one of them! I could cry. (Honestly, Vanitas’s character arc was one of the first things I outlined for this fic I might have a problem. So if anyone ever wants to yell and cry about Vanitas, just go ahead and @ me. I’m in this hell forever.)
> 
> Writing a multi-person conversation scene is not easy and I’m staring to think it’ll never be easy. I keep forgetting that characters exist… Agh, I still need to work on it… And the pacing feels so all-over-the-place but I’m just /resigned/ to it at this point. This chapter has fought against me at every turn.
> 
> And if you’re wondering if I made that song/band reference on purpose: Yes. Both of them.
> 
> That’s it for me! Leave a comment if you feel so inclined~ Talking to people makes me far more anxious than it should, but I’m… working on it.


	4. The Fate of the Faithless

 

**4**  


The Castle of Dreams is a world centered around a huge castle with thin towers and impressive spires. The giant clock face on the tallest tower chimes with bells that ring through to the far reaches of the world. Riku has never actually been here before. He’s only heard stories. It’s a very quiet, peaceful place.

The path he’d opened for himself lands him inside the castle. Is this considered trespassing? At least he can save himself the trivialities. For now, where is Cinderella?

He wanders through the corridors, sticking to the shadows and slipping behind pillars and corners whenever a servant or other official comes bustling by. For the most part, the castle is empty of people. He’s no closer to finding what he came here for.

He’s on one of the higher floors when he hears a voice. It’s far away, and very muffled, but it’s clearly a woman’s voice. It sounds like she’s singing. It’s his only lead, so he follows the sound to the end of the hall. Left. Then right.

Here. Her voice is coming from behind this door. Now that he’s so close, he can clearly make out the words of her song as she croons languidly about nightingales. The melody pricks at a sour memory he’d rather keep locked away. Now he’s certain. This is Cinderella’s voice.

Riku throws all stealth out the window and knocks.

Cinderella stops singing. “Yes?” He opens the door, and finds her in a room full of fabric and lace. There are several faceless mannequins dressed up in extravagant, unfinished gowns held together with nothing but pins. She gasps as he steps inside. “Oh! You… you’re Sora’s friend, aren’t you?”

There are countless titles Cinderella could’ve given him. ‘Sora’s Friend’ is by far the best one. “You remember me?”

She brings a thoughtful hand to her chin. “Riku, wasn’t it?”

“Yeah. I’m surprised you remember.” More than surprised.

“Sora talked about you a lot,” she giggles. “It’s hard to forget his earnestness.”

“Hah. That sounds like Sora…”

“But I’m sure you didn’t come here to reminisce. Something must’ve happened.”

“How could you tell?”

Cinderella shrugs slightly. “I don’t think there’s any other reason for you to show up like this… It has to do with Sora, doesn’t it? Is he alright?”

She sees through him so easily. Riku has to resist taking a step back. “I don’t know,” he admits. “That’s what I need to find out.”

“How can I help?”

He supposes the best place to start would be to tell her what happened. How, after the final battle against Xehanort and his army, a gigantic and ancient-looking door appeared before them. It was a door unlike any Riku had ever seen before—shining and ornate and radiating magic. Even grander than the passages between the Realms of Light and Darkness. How no one knew what it was. How it didn’t react to any of their keyblades, and didn’t budge when Donald and Goofy had tried to brute-force it open. The strange look that settled over Sora’s face as he dismissed his blade and held out his hand. How the door opened and nothing but white light spilled out. How Riku let Sora go, and the door slammed shut behind him, taking all the light in the world with it. “Do you have any idea what that door could’ve been, or what’s on the other side?”

Cinderella’s face has turned serious. She searches the floor for some kind of answer. “It sounds awfully familiar… Like a long-forgotten dream. I can’t quite recall it. There’s only… a feeling.” She wilts. “I’m sorry. I’m sure it’s deeply connected to the Light, but I’m not sure how.”

Honestly, after his conversation with Kairi, he was expecting too little to be disappointed. “I see. Is there anything else you can tell me?”

She slowly shakes her head. “I’m afraid not. I wish I could help you more…” A pause. It looks like she’s thought of something. “Are you feeling alright?”

“Me?” Riku blurts.

“Of course. I know it must be hard, running around like this.”

“It’s alright,” he says. “I’m used to it.”

She shoots him a look, but doesn’t say anything. What is that supposed to mean? Before he can openly question it, though, she claps her fist in her palm. “Oh, I know! Perhaps the Fairy Godmother can help!”

“Fairy Godmother?” Riku repeats. He’s seen stranger things, for sure, but he still can’t say the words without feeling a little silly.

“Oh, yes!” Cinderella continues. “She helped me when I was lost and close to giving up hope. With just the right amount of magic, anything is possible. I’m sure she can help you as well!”

Well. It’s better than nothing. “And where do I find her?”

“She would usually show up while I was brooding in the garden at the old Chateau. I’m sure she’ll appear if you go there.”

“What makes you so sure?”

Her smile is soft. “Because you need help. She never turns a blind eye to those in trouble.”

He’s still not sure how to feel about that expression. Is it pity? “Where is the Chateau?”

“You can see it from here, actually.” She points out the window, over the cluttered town below the castle and towards the hilly, wooded area beyond. “Do you see that rooftop there? With the tower?” Riku nods. “It’s a bit of a walk, but you should have no trouble getting into the garden.”

“Got it. Thanks.” And he turns to leave.

“Anytime. Oh, and Riku?”

“Yeah?”

Cinderella is still smiling gently at him. “Do try to use the front door next time.”

“Oh.” She’d noticed that, huh? Riku laughs beneath his breath, if only at himself. “Sure thing.”

He leaves the castle the same way he entered, quietly and without any fuss. There’s a small town center just outside of the palace which soon gives way to greenery and trees and more upscale houses. Some are downright mansions, with huge estates surrounding them. Eventually, he reaches the Chateau. It’s easily recognizable from the steep shape of the roof, and the copper spires who have long lost their metallic luster to the turquoise of old, corroded age. The garden lies beyond the building, lined with some rather unruly hedges. He silently makes his way through trees and flowerbeds, passing by vaguely artistic statues and old fountains that haven’t been used in ages. The air smells of rain and dust. There’s no one around. Barely any noise at all.

At the very center of the garden is a large fountain bubbling with water. At least _one_ of them is working. It’s wrapped with stone seating and beds of luscious flowers.

Riku plops onto one of the stone benches and waits. Still nothing. No movement or sound from anyone or anything besides the massive fountain before him. What did he really expect from this?

“A Fairy Godmother, huh?” he snorts. “Well, if you’re really here, now would be a good time to show up.” There’s no answer, only the gentle chirping of insects. Was that too standoffish? He’s really not good at these sorts of things. “Uh… Fairy Godmother? Are you there?”

He feels ridiculous.

It’s no good. There’s no answer. Is he not trying hard enough or something? Is there some other kind of magic involved here? Riku leans forward and sighs towards the ground. This is not his element. This is more of Sora’s thing.

There’s a thought. What would Sora do? Riku immediately imagines him traipsing across the garden, climbing trees and statues and shouting at the top of his lungs: “Fairy Godmother! Where are you!? Please come out!” The mental image alone is enough to make Riku chuckle.

And there’s no way Riku is going to do all of that. It would be disingenuous, anyway. Anyone would be able to see through it.

He imagines Sora laughing at him in some teasing way, asking if he’s giving up already.

No, he’s not. He gets to his feet, staring into the night sky above the pinnacle of the fountain. “I don’t know if you’re here or not, but if you are, I could really use your help.” There’s only a gentle breeze. A minute goes by. Two. Maybe more. He laughs like a cough. “Figures.” Nothing is ever easy, huh? It looks like this world was just a waste of time.

“Now, now, child. That’s no way to be! These things take time!”

The voice comes from right behind him. He whips around to find a short, older lady with pure white hair and lavender robes. He didn’t even hear her approach. “Are you… the Fairy Godmother?”

She nods quickly. “Why, yes. Weren’t you the one calling for me?”

“I was, but I—”

“Didn’t believe I’d show? Now, dear, that can’t be true! If you didn’t believe—I wouldn’t be here. So, at the very least, you must believe a _little_.” She flicks her wand and glittering light spills out. She points it at the center of his chest. “I can tell. Deep in your heart, you still believe in magic.”

“I do?” He already knows that she’s speaking of something far greater than simple elemental magic. Something more abstract… Ancient and childlike.

“The magic of miracles,” she smiles. “Now, if only you had a little more faith!”

Riku tilts his head. “Aren’t belief and faith the same thing?”

“Not at all, child! Belief is self-serving—it needs no basis. But faith requires another piece. Faith in oneself. Faith in others…” The fairy scans him up and down, and the corners of her lips drop. “It seems you’re lacking in both.”

“What?”

“To a certain degree, I’d say,” she nods several times. Wait. The conversation is hurdling forward to fast it’s hard to keep up. “Now, my boy, what was it you wanted to speak about?”

He hasn’t had a chance to process what just happened yet! It takes him a second to change gears and relay the events again. Fairy Godmother’s expression turns solemn as he explains everything. “Ah, yes, I sensed such a thing. What a dramatic burst of Light it was!”

“So you know something? How can I get back there?”

“I’m afraid I’m not sure,” she admits. “That place is quite ancient. Older than this world. Even older than me!” She giggles at her own joke. Riku is not so amused. “But I know you’re on the right track. That place… that Door is interwoven with the Light. It’s very important.”

“To maintain balance?”

“Now, I wouldn’t go so far as to say that.” Is that a scowl? “Take it from me: there is no quick fix for Light and Darkness. They must coexist, yes, but balance?” She shakes her head. “The two turn like the tides.”

An eternal struggle, huh? “I see… But that doesn’t exactly help me.”

She suddenly grins at him. “Are you certain it doesn’t?”

“Huh?”

“Faith, child! Faith!”

“You’re asking me to have faith in you?”

“Not just me, no.”

He waits for her to elaborate. She doesn’t. “Alright,” he concedes. “Thanks for your help.”

The Fairy Godmother winks and disappears in a burst of glitter. “Good luck!”

Right. He could laugh. So much for progress. Maybe this world was a waste after all. He’s gotten nothing but a lecture. No closer to Sora, the Door, or anything else.

Hopefully the others are having better luck.

x

“Hey, Ventus?”

“Yeah?”

“We’re here to talk to Snow White, right?”

“Yup.”

“So, where does she live?”

“In the castle, of course.”

“And where are _we_?”

Ventus stays quiet for several seconds. “In the middle of the forest.”

Roxas merely nods. “Just checking.”

“Hey, give me a break. I haven’t been here in a long time,” he pouts. “I just misjudged the landing a little.”

“A little?”

“Yeah! The castle is just outside the forest.” Ventus starts walking down some vague path between the trees. “C’mon! It’s not far.”

“If you say so,” he concedes, and follows close behind.

The trees are tall and bursting with leaves that block the sun, so the entire forest is covered in shadows. Woodland creatures scuttle about. Strange noises sound in the distance, presumably from some animal Roxas has never seen before. Ventus walks through the woods with confidence. Maybe he knows where he’s going after all. Eventually, the path opens up to a clearing. The trees still block the sunlight, but they’re far bigger and less dense. The huge trees have menacing branches and weirdly-patterned bark.

Roxas suddenly has a bad feeling about this place. He sees Ventus tense up as well, as if he can feel it too.

A cool wind stirs the forest, and everything starts moving.

Roxas shirks away from one of the massive trees as it groans in the wind. “These things almost look alive.”

“Yeah, they do that sometimes,” Ventus chuckles, but he still seems on-edge. “Come to life, I mean.”

Wait a minute. “ _What_?”

“It’s fine! They’re not _that_ strong!”

“So you’ve fought them before?”

“Yeah! They were no trouble!”

“Ventus, where did you bring me?”

“A world full of magic! Like Riku said! And call me Ven.”

Another fierce wind blows through the forest, sending the trees into a frenzy. A branch swipes down towards them and Roxas summons one of his weapons out of instinct.

Ven keeps snickering. “I didn’t peg you as the jumpy type.”

“What else am I supposed to do after you tell me the forest is about to come to life and attack us!?”

“It’ll be _fine_!” he laughs. Roxas only narrows his glare. Ven takes a few more steps and gazes into the distance. “Huh. I don’t remember the path being so overgrown here.”

Roxas steps up beside him. All he sees is dense forest. No signs of a path at all. “You sure this is the path? Just looks like more trees to me.”

“I… think so?”

Dread drops into Roxas’s stomach. “Ven, are we lost?”

“No, it’s fine! The trail has just changed, that’s all!”

“We’re definitely lost.”

“Come on, Roxas! Don’t be so negative! This is our first mission together!”

“Yeah, and we’re _lost_.”

Ven just groans towards the sky. “We’re not lost!”

“Then what would you call it?”

“We’re just… misplaced!” Ven announces. Roxas remains unconvinced.

The wind picks up again, and every tree in the forest turns ominous. The sky is dark, like it may storm, or is it still just the shadow of the trees? Ven and Roxas stand closer to each other.

“Okay. I have an idea,” Ven murmurs. “Back me up.”

“You got it.”

Ven takes off running.

Hold up. Roxas sprints after him. “This is your idea!?”

“This is how I found my way out the first time!” he yells over his shoulder.

The trees on either side start moving stiffly and inorganically. Knotholes open and close like eyes. Branches sway inward like giant arms. Sharp chunks of bark gnash together like teeth. Roxas picks up his pace. Ven is really fast.

“C’mon! We’re almost there!” Ven shouts.

“How can you tell!?”

“The forest is clearing up!”

Roxas certainly hopes so. They keep running until the wind dies down, and the trees grow thin. They breach the line of the forest and into an explosion of wildflowers. Sunlight suddenly returns.

Ven stops running, and Roxas nearly trips over him. “We made it!” he pants.

Roxas leans onto his knees. “Great.” Over his shoulder, there’s nothing but ordinary woods. He’s not going crazy, is he? What kind of world is this?

“There’s the castle,” Ven points across the clearing of flowers, where a huge stone castle sits atop a rocky cliff.

“It’s like out of a storybook…”

“Let’s go!” Ven’s already off and running again. Roxas takes a breath and follows the best he can.

The main entrance to the castle is a massive archway with iron bars and a single guard. He’s wearing simple armor and stands with an ornate halberd in his hand. It’s probably just for show. Ven and Roxas stroll up to the guard as if they belong there.

“Halt!” the guard bellows. “What business have you here?”

Ven grins at the man’s glare. He pulls his arms behind his head and leans onto his heels, and Roxas could swear he looks just like Sora. “Hey! We’re here to see Snow White!”

“What do you know of the Princess?”

“She’s my friend!”

The guard is not convinced. Ven’s happy facade slowly begins to fade.

Roxas shrugs. It’s really not a big deal. If the guy doesn’t budge, they could always sneak in. Doesn’t look that hard.

Ven drops his arms. “C’mon, just go ask her. My name’s Ventus. I’m sure she’ll remember me.” The guard doesn’t move at all. He doesn’t even respond.

Looks like they might have to sneak in after all.

As soon as Roxas thinks that, Ven cups his hands over his mouth and shouts at the top of his lungs: “ _Hell-o! Snow White! Are you there!?_ ”

“Be _silent_ , you!” The guard swipes at Ven with the blunt end of his halberd.

The blonde boy easily jumps back. He’s wearing such a smug grin.

The guard glares, looking like he’ll go for another jab, but has to stop short at the sound of a girl’s voice from inside the castle walls: “Oh! What’s going on out here?” A small girl leans out of the main doors. She looks even younger than Ven and Roxas. Her eyes find the commotion at the entrance and she gasps. “Ven? Is that you?”

Ven’s smile could break his face in two. He waves up to the princess. “Yeah! You remember!”

“Of course,” she giggles. “Do come in!”

Roxas and Ven make sure to give the guard their best smiles as they brush past him. The girl, who must be Snow White, waves them into the main hall of the castle. She has ivory skin and pitch-black hair, while her heart is pure and warm and free of any trace of darkness. Roxas can sense it clearly. A Princess of Heart.

Ven walks straight to her. “Thank you, Snow. It’s been a long time. I hope you’re doing okay.”

“Oh, yes. I’m wonderful!” Her eyes linger over the silent Roxas for a moment. “But, Ven, I didn’t know you had a twin!”

Roxas squints, but his so-called ‘twin’ merely chuckles. “It’s… a long story.”

“I’m Roxas,” he offers.

She bows her head. “Snow White. Pleased to meet you.”

“We were hoping you could help us with something.”

“Oh? What is that?”

“We’re trying to find Sora.”

Snow’s expression falls. “Has something bad happened?”

“That’s just the thing,” Ven starts. “We don’t know.” He recounts the events of Sora’s disappearance, skipping over most of the unimportant details.

Snow holds a delicate hand to her lips. “How strange.”

“Any ideas on how we can find that door?”

She shakes her head, almost immediately. “I’m afraid not.”

“Oh,” Ven deflates.

“I may not be able to help, but I know someone who can. Follow me.” She leads the boys further into the castle, down long corridors and up several staircases, until they reach a room at the far end of one of the tallest towers. It’s filled with lavish drapes and bizarre-looking curios. The fire clearly hasn’t been lit in ages, so the only light in the room comes from a single window. “This room once belonged to my stepmother. She had a knack for magic, and finding curious things. She was always talking to her magical mirror for advice. So I’m sure if you ask the wise old mirror, you’ll get your answer.”

“A wise… mirror?” Roxas repeats.

“Yes. The spirit of the mirror knows all sorts of things.”

Ven spots the device in question, mounted on the wall across the room, and bounds towards it. “A magic mirror! How does it work?”

Snow White shrugs. “I’m afraid I don’t know.”

He stands proudly in front of the mirror anyway. “Okay. I have a question!” Several seconds pass. Only his reflection stares back.

Roxas leans in closer. “Hello? Anybody in there?” Silence. It’s just the two of them standing before an ordinary mirror. “Guess not.”  
  
“Huh. It’s no wonder it’s enchanted,” Ven muses. “This is the cleanest mirror I’ve ever seen.”  
  
“Same here.”  
  
“Wait. Something about this seems really familiar…” He taps on his forehead, like a percussive prayer of memory. “I think I read it in a storybook once. We need to know the magic words to activate it.”  
  
Roxas snorts. “This place really is straight out of a fairy tale.” That thoughtful look settles over his face as well, and after a few moments, he snaps his fingers. “ _Mirror, Mirror on the wall; Reveal yourself and speak to all!_ ”  
  
“That’s it!”  
  
The clear surface of the mirror ripples in response. The distance blurs out of focus and turns dark. A disgruntled, mask-like face appears through wisps of smoke and assesses the near-identical boys before it.  
  
Ven stares in awe. “The Mirror!”  
  
“I can’t believe that really worked,” Roxas laughs.  
  
The face in the Mirror barely tilts. The smallest sign of recognition. “ _Tired eyes and hearts so meek; what is the knowledge that you seek_ _?_ ” Rhymes and riddles. Great. He really shouldn’t be surprised.  
  
Ven takes the lead: “We’re looking for our friend. He passed through this crazy door, and then they both vanished. We don’t know if he’s okay or not, so… Where can we find that door? Is it the Door to the True Light?”

“ _That threshold, ‘tis in brightness drowned. The door is not to be found_ ,” is all the Mirror replies.

He frowns. “What about Sora? Do you know where he is?”

“ _His fate to that place is bound; both door and boy aren’t to be found_.”

Ven scratches his head. “Uh...”

Roxas rolls his eyes. “Some magic mirror. What was even the point of coming here? Of any of this? Like you said, we don’t even know if Sora is still _alive_ or not.”

“But Roxas—”

“ _My, what little faith gives. The boy you seek still lives_ ,” the Mirror interrupts.

And they both stop short. “Huh?”

“ _It’s the one you call Sora of which I speak. For he is alive; the one you seek_.”

Ven instantly latches onto Roxas’s arm, shaking him. “Did you hear that?!”

Roxas shoves him off. “Then, how do we find him?”

The Mirror looks grimly at the two of them. “ _To seek and to find must not be all; and when the time comes, it may heed your hearts’ call. At an exact time, in an exact space, it may appear to lead you to that place_.”

“So... what does that mean?”

Ven scratches his head again. “We can’t just find the Door... we have to... summon it?”

“ _It’s the most ancient of knowledge indeed. Follow the stars, and ancient texts shall lead._ ”

“Like books? You mean a library?”

There’s no answer from the Mirror.

“Forget about that part for a second,” Roxas dismisses. The smile slowly forms on his face. “Sora’s still alive.”

Ven grabs his shoulders and shakes him again. “Right!”  
  
His hand clenches slowly over his heart. “I never thought… I’d be so relieved to hear that.”  
  
“I think it’s a good place to start.” He glances back to the Mirror. “Thank you!”  
  
Again, there’s no answer. Not even a reaction. But Roxas and Ventus are too excited to be deterred. As they start to leave the room, already thinking of their next moves, the Mirror decides to speak up one last time: “ _Fight or flight. Beware the light_.”

The two boys carefully turn back around, but the Mirror isn’t volunteering anything else.

“What was that?” Roxas asks.

“ _Be wary of what lurks in the light. Whiteness is blinding to hide horrors from sight. Young keyblade wielders beware, for the Master of Light shall be lurking there._ ” And the face within the mirror vanishes into nothing.

Ven glances over. “That didn’t sound good.”

Roxas agrees. “The Master of Light?” he echoes. “Who, or what, is that supposed to be?”  
  
He only shrugs. He doesn’t know either. But they can’t dwell on it now. They won’t. Not when they actually have good news!  
  
Besides, five heads are better than two, right?

Ven goes immediately up to Snow White and grasps both of her hands in an ecstatic embrace. “Thank you, Snow! Thank you!” he cries.

“Oh!” she gasps as he bounces up and down. “You’re quite welcome!”

Roxas peels his companion off of the princess. “Don’t mind him. He’s easily excited.”

“Right. Sorry. I didn’t mean to be rude or anything,” Ven laughs. “But we’ve got our information now. We’ll see you later!”

Snow White waves bemusedly at them. “Goodbye, Ven. Roxas.”

Ven is still brimming with that energy as they leave and descend the castle steps. “We have to tell Riku!”

“Oh. Right,” Roxas mumbles like an afterthought.

“Roxas.”

He waves away that scolding tone. “Don’t worry. I got it.” He plucks the phone from his pocket and dials. Riku’s face appears on the screen a moment later. Roxas skips over any and all greetings. “We have news.”

“And clues!” Ven adds, forcing himself into the camera frame.

“At least someone does,” Riku mutters. His efforts must not have been as productive.

Ven counts on his fingers, “First: we have confirmation that Sora is still out there somewhere. He’s still alive!”  
  
Riku’s expression turns entirely blank. “And what kind of confirmation is that?”  
  
“An all-knowing, magic mirror confirmation!”  
  
“I see,” is all he says. His gaze has turned distant and vague.  
  
Roxas rolls his eyes again. “Geez, the least you could do is smile about it.”  
  
“You’ve only confirmed something I was already sure of,” he retaliates.

“And second,” Ven quickly interrupts to change the subject, “we need a library! Where should we start?”

Riku narrows his eyes thoughtfully. “A library?”

“Yeah. Maybe Radiant Garden?”

He shakes his head. “Most of those books only pertain to Ansem’s experiments with darkness.” Ven looks disappointed. “What exactly are we looking for?”

“The most ancient of texts,” Roxas drones in a voice too deep.

That makes Riku smirk. “Well, Donald and Goofy mentioned something about a great library at Disney Castle.”

“Really?!” Ven pipes up again, already far too excited.

“I’ll meet you guys there. I have to check on Lea and Vanitas.”

“Roger!” Ven salutes, and the transmission cuts off.

x

There’s no answer to his call. The connection is dead. Should he be worried?

Riku glances out at the courtyard again. The fence is still chained shut. The outside shrubbery is wild and overgrown. It’s a far cry from the newness of the inside, fresh from its magical renovation. It’s still weird to see the old mansion like this. Riku always thought dilapidation sort of suited this place.

But never mind that. What could’ve happened to the other two? They were supposed to meet back here. What’s keeping them? Is Riku going to have to hunt them down? Through all of Enchanted Dominion?

And then a dark corridor opens up in the courtyard, and Vanitas falls out of it with a blood-soaked Lea draped over his shoulder.

What?

Riku’s body moves on its own. He’s out the door before he knows it. “What happened?” he shouts as he sprints into the courtyard.

Vanitas is coughing, lying face-down in the dirt with Lea unconscious and practically on top of him. “Fix it,” he gasps.

“What?”

“Fix this first!” He gestures to Lea as he tries to sit up. “I don’t know any cure spells!”

Shit. Right. Dark magic isn’t exactly geared towards self-preservation. “Okay.” Riku kneels down. Lea is in bad shape. There are several gashes in his chest and side, and a painful looking wound on his head. His leg is twisted into an unnatural shape. Blood is soaking into his clothes. And now that Riku is looking at them, they’re both covered in dirt and scrapes. They even brought some rubble along with them through the portal. “This is bad.”

“Tell me something I don’t know.”

“None of my cure spells are strong enough to fix this...” he admits. “We need Aerith.”

“And what the hell is that?”

“Vanitas, can you open another path to Radiant Garden?”

He reels back, almost disgustedly. “Look, I’m not _pure_ darkness anymore. I can’t just pull those things up like I used to. It’s not fucking easy.”

“Can you do it or not?” Riku snaps.

Vanitas glares, but still raises his shaking hand. Another dark corridor appears with clear exertion on his face. “I hope you’re prepared for a rough landing,” he growls.

“Whatever works,” he sighs, and hoists Lea from under the arms. “Grab his legs.”

He mutters several complaints beneath his breath, but follows directions.

They step through the dark portal and are immediately dumped out into the fountains near the center of town.

“Fuck,” Vanitas sputters.

Riku spits out a mouthful of water, “No, this works. C’mon.”  
  
They find Aerith closer to the castle, in a clinic adjacent to Cid’s workshop. She often works and experiments diligently to create new, more powerful curatives and potions. The shelving on the walls is lined with such bottles of greenish concoctions, made from flowers, herbs, and magic. Riku and Vanitas stumble through her door with Lea’s unconscious body and she springs to her feet. “Oh my!”

“Sorry to barge in like this,” Riku grimaces, “but we could really use your help.”

Aerith gasps into her hand. “Of course. Put him here.” She quickly cleans off a nearby workbench, and Lea is deposited there. “What in the world happened?”

Riku can’t answer that. Vanitas _doesn’t_ answer that.

She looks over Lea in their silence. She’s too preoccupied to dwell on it. She carefully prods him—head, arms, ribs, and legs—assessing the damage. She frowns at the give in his ribs, and there’s a lump forming on his leg. She pulls a green vial from her pocket and breaks it over him in a flash of light. “This should help with the obvious wounds, but the broken bones will take some time.” The other two merely nod. Riku knows all-too well how long that takes, and absentmindedly touches his wrist. “Oh! I should have the ingredients for that potion around here somewhere.” And she starts flitting around the laboratory. Lea remains unmoving on the table.

Aerith insists that Lea will be okay. He might be in pain for a little while, when the bones are still healing, but otherwise, she says: “He’ll be just fine.” Apparently it looks worse than it is. She offers the other two a potion from her shelf, but they both decline. Vanitas even sounded sure of it. Riku sends him a look. What’s with that? Is this some kind of pride thing?

Riku and Vanitas carefully move Lea to a spare room in the clinic while she works on her potion. The redhead groans as they place him on the bed. At least he’s still responsive. When he and Vanitas had first stumbled through that dark corridor, Riku was expecting the worst.

Speaking of which, it’s time to get an answer for Aerith’s question.

Riku stares him down. Vanitas can’t miss the accusation in his eyes. “Alright. Talk. What happened?”

His lips press tightly together. Whatever he wants to say and whatever he needs to say are fighting for dominance in his head. It all manifests as silence.

“It’s not his fault,” a weak voice coughs.

Riku turns and finds Lea’s barely open eyes. “What?”

“He saved me,” Lea grins, and then the curatives really kick in and pull him back into unconsciousness.

Riku takes a calming breath. Damn it. How embarrassing. He should know better than to jump to conclusions like that. He should know better than anyone that Vanitas’s darkness doesn’t make him inherently _bad_... but considering his _past…_

Vanitas is only staring at Lea with wide, clear eyes. Like a child gaping in awe. The dirt smeared onto his face does well to hide the cuts and scrapes.

“Alright,” Riku sighs, finally calming down. “Are you okay?”

Those golden eyes flick towards him. Anger fills them yet again. “I’m fine,” he mutters.

“What happened?”

Vanitas crosses his arms. He looks tired. And dirty. And injured. But his voice betrays nothing. “Maleficent’s castle.”

He can only blink. “You went to Maleficent’s castle?”

“The first one,” he clarifies. “That was her original world. But she set traps to keep people out of her business.” Then he snorts. “She was always wily like that.”

That’s true. Maleficent is nothing if not meticulous. “You ran into a trap, then?”

“Not just any trap.” The disbelief is still written all over his face. “The entire castle... It was alive. She turned it into some kind of eight-headed serpent.”

His mouth drops open. “A what?”

“A fucking. Eight-headed. Serpent.” Vanitas presses. “And we had to fight it. I wanted to just leave it, but Lea is a fucking Good Guy trying to play the Hero! He says we can’t leave the thing to destroy the rest of the world. But that’s fine. I enjoy a challenge. So we fight. And let’s just say... the thing was very good at playing dead.”

“What do you mean?”

“Lea celebrated too early, and it grabbed him.” He clearly grimaces. “Tossed him like a doll. But it’s dead now. I made sure of it.”

Riku narrows his eyes. “You’re sure?”

“I dropped a castle on it.”

“You—” then he stops. No, considering the stories he’s heard of Vanitas from the past, he doesn’t doubt any of it. “Okay. I get it. That sounds rough. Are you sure you’re okay?”

“I’m fine,” he scowls again.

“You don’t _look_ fine.” Riku summons his blade and gently raises it. “At least let me cast a curing spell or—”  
  
Vanitas smacks the keyblade away. “I don’t need your help!”

“Really? Because you’re presenting a _fantastic_ case for yourself right now,” he snaps. Vanitas only glowers at him. It occurs to Riku that he managed to lose his temper again. How is Vanitas so good at pulling out the worst in him? He takes another deep breath to calm himself down. “Look, if you won’t let me heal you, at least let Aerith do it.” That stern expression doesn’t change. He’s so stubborn. Why can’t he just—No, stop getting so annoyed. It’s not going to help. Vanitas is just… a brat. Yeah. Riku looks at him, covered in dirt with his arms crossed and his lips pursed. He’s _pouting_. There’s a stain on his shoulder that’s darker than just dirt, and Riku gestures towards it. “You’re bleeding, you know.”

Vanitas twitches, hands tightening over his arms. He hadn’t noticed. “So what?”

“So, I’m betting that hurts.”

“It’s fine.”

“Aerith offered you a potion. You could take it instead of just dealing with the pain. Taking medicine doesn’t make you weak.” _You’re not impressing anyone_ , is what he wants to say, but decides against it. That would just make things worse, wouldn’t it?

Vanitas vaguely shifts his weight. It looks like he might actually be considering it.

“Cure spells are pretty simple, ya know,” Riku continues. “As much fighting as you do, I’m surprised you haven’t learned one already.”

“It was never needed,” he mutters, more quiet than forceful.

“Why not?”

“Pain makes you stronger.”

“Not when it’s _constant_.” It’s the first response that comes to his tongue, and Riku doesn’t realize how strongly he believes it until he’s already said it. Vanitas is staring at him wide-eyed now. What’s with that reaction? Was it Riku’s words, or his tone? “I could teach you, if you want. Some healing magic.”

He scoffs, “I already told you, idiot. I don’t need your help.” But then he turns and leaves the room, back towards Aerith’s lab. He actually went.

Riku almost smirks, but his thoughts are distracted. The only other person in the quiet room is Lea, who is still unconscious and in a pretty bad way. Even with all of Aerith’s tricks and their own healing magic, his recovery isn’t going to be speedy. Mending bones takes time and/or high-level magic that frankly none of them are capable of. Maybe he could ask Aqua for ideas?

Riku runs a hand down his face. _How_ is he going to explain this to Roxas?

x

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I put way too much effort into the Mirror’s rhymes. My thoughts are iambic now.
> 
> On a completely unrelated note: ‘Stars’ by Grace Potter and the Nocturnals is a post-kh3 soriku anthem- you can’t fight me on this. It’s also on my playlist for this fic, but. Ya know. Yeah.


	5. The Bad Guy

**5  
  
**  
  
Ven is still out of breath when he leans against the lamppost, biting into an overly-decorated scoop of ice cream. His face twists at the flavor that spreads across his tongue. “Agh, they gave me the spicy one again!” he pouts.  
  
Roxas shakes his head. His own dessert must be the sweet-and-salty variety, if the pretzel stick garnish is any indication. “I can’t believe you beat me.”  
  
He’s still stuck on that? Ven shrugs. “I used to come to Disney Town a lot.” He never spent too much time on the racetrack, though, but Roxas doesn’t need to know that. Especially after his spectacular 5-0 losing streak. “You’ll get the hang of it.”  
  
He gestures wildly with his ice cream. “You bet I will! Then you’ll be eating _my_ dust. Got it?”  
  
“Bring it on!” Ven grins. They laugh and continue working on their ice cream, discussing tricks and tips for the racecourse as they go. Time drags on, until the ice cream is long gone. Roxas eats his surprisingly quickly. And Ven thought _he_ had a sweet tooth. The sun slowly creeps across the sky. The square remains quiet. Ven stretches his arms high above his head. “Man… what’s taking them?”  
  
“They should’ve been here by now,” Roxas grumbles. “Should we just go to the library without them?”  
  
Ven really doesn’t want to. His shoulders drop low. “Do you think something happened?”  
  
“I guess it’s possible? But it would have to be pretty bad to stop those three, right? Crazy stuff like that doesn’t happen every day.”  
  
“Maybe you’re right,” Ven concedes.  
  
Roxas pushes himself off the wall. “Let’s just head to the library. I’m sick of waiting around.”  
  
Ven agrees, but of course, it’s not long after they start moving that they spot Riku walking across the square to meet them. He’s alone. That’s weird.  
  
Ven steps over immediately. “Hey, Riku! What took ya?”  
  
“We’d just given up on you,” Roxas snorts.  
  
Riku’s face is tense—entirely stoic compared to the last time they spoke through the phone. “Sorry, the others ran into some trouble.”  
  
Ven could bite off his own tongue. He spoke it into existence. “What kind of trouble?” he chances, suddenly understanding Riku’s expression and dreading every second before the answer.  
  
“It was a trap set by Maleficent,” he explains. “A powerful one, too. Vanitas won’t give me a lot of details.”  
  
“Then, what about Lea?”  
  
A pause. A clear grimace. “Lea is still unconscious.”  
  
And the two blondes stop dead.  
  
“Are they alright?” Ven blurts.  
  
“They’ll be okay. They’re in Radiant Garden with Aerith.”  
  
“Then, let’s go! C’mon—Roxas?” Ven sends his silent companion a sidelong glance.  
  
Roxas is nothing but a statue. His eyes are unfocused as he stares up at Riku, hands absolutely trembling with fury.  
  
Ven reaches for him. “Roxas?” but his companion moves before he can even blink.  
  
Roxas grabs Riku by the lapel of his jacket. His arm reels back, but he hesitates. That clenched fist stays shaking in the air, ready to fly straight into Riku’s face.  
  
Riku only blinks at him. That expression is mild. Why is he so calm?  
  
Ven finds that the confusion grounds him, and he can finally snap out of his stupor well enough to grasp Roxas’s arm. “C’mon, let’s not do this. We should go check on the others.”  
  
Roxas doesn’t even glance at him. He stays poised to attack for another moment or more, thinking really hard about the consequences, what he _should_ do, or maybe just all the horrible things he wants to do to Riku right now. Ven isn’t quite sure. But eventually, Roxas relents, shoving Riku away and roughly brushing off Ven’s hand. “Fine. Let’s go,” and he storms away.  
  
Ven watches Riku sigh. It seems he was expecting a reaction like that, if not a worse one. Ven’s words fail him, so he decides to follow after Roxas. If Riku moves to do the same, he isn’t close behind.  
  
x  
  
Riku finds Roxas and Ventus in Lea’s room at the clinic. The redhead seems to have finally regained consciousness, as he and the other two are currently joking about something. His face flushes with pain every time he tries to laugh.  
  
Roxas notices Riku’s entrance, and whirls around to glare at him before he can say anything at all. “Why didn’t you come get us as soon as it happened?” he demands.  
  
“Roxas,” Lea warns.  
  
But it’s fine. Riku expected this. He keeps his voice leveled and measured. “I had to make sure everything was alright first. We had to get Lea some help. There wasn’t a lot of time to think.”  
  
“It’s been _hours_!” he yells. “That Gummiphone in your pocket isn’t just for taking stupid pictures, you know!”  
  
“Roxas—”  
  
“You should’ve told us. We could’ve helped!”   
  
“Look, Roxas,” he sighs. “I understand why you’re upset, but there really wasn’t any—”

A harsh laugh cuts those words short. “No. Don’t bother. I already know you don’t care.”  
  
“What?”

“We’re just stepping stones for you. Who knows that better than me?” A sick, knowing smirk passes over his face. It screams volumes of all the things only they know. The secrets and actions they carry between them, born beneath the shadows of a hollow city. “We don’t matter to you. None of us. Not me, or Ventus, or Vanitas... not even Lea. You’d throw us all away if it meant getting to Sora. Don’t even try to deny it.” It’s not like he’s giving Riku much of a chance to. “But I won’t let you do that. So, even if it’s you... I’m going to keep trying. After hearing that Sora is still alive out there somewhere, I have to know what really happened. So I’m going to be the one to keep you in line. I won’t let you throw the worlds into darkness again for this. If we’re going to do it, we’re doing it _my way_. If you ever try to sacrifice us, _any_ of us, I promise: I will be there to cut you down. And no, I won’t feel sorry about it either.”

Their eyes stay fixed on each other. The tension is so thick it’s getting hard to breathe.

Even so, it doesn’t look like Roxas is done. The words are still bubbling under the surface, threatening to eat him alive. He twitches.

And Lea firmly grasps his arm. He doesn’t lean up from the bed, or say anything at all. He only meets Roxas’s gaze with a silent intensity. He’s telling him to quit now.

Roxas eventually relents, and drains his frustration with a heavy sigh. “I’m going to get some air,” he mutters, and leaves the room.

The door clicks shut with finality. No one dares speak.

Finally, Riku’s face breaks. He all but collapses into a nearby chair, cranes his head back towards the ceiling, and sighs into his hands. He looks exhausted.

Lea watches him carefully. “So, when are you gonna stop pretending to be the bad guy?”

“What do you mean?” he mutters.

“You keep acting like an unapologetic jerk to Roxas, saying that you don’t feel bad about anything that’s happened. But that’s not true. Why do you keep being the punching bag?”

He stares at the ceiling for several seconds. “Because I deserve it.”

“Do you, though? Feeling bad and feeling regret are two different things, ya know.”

Riku doesn’t answer.

Ventus shifts uncomfortably on his feet. “Riku, are you okay?”

“It’s fine,” he says, clearly lying. “I’m just tired.”  
  
Ven doesn’t believe it for a second.  
  
He slowly stands up and heads for the door. “Let’s just call it a day.” He doesn’t wait for Ven to agree. He simply leaves. He walks out into the corridor and comes face to face with Kairi and Xion. Roxas must’ve told them what happened. One holds a basket of flowers while the other is toting a bag full of ice creams. But their eyes are the same. Those glares are like heated knives. They dig into his skin, slicing through the bone. There’s nothing he can do to lessen the blow.

His eyes drop to the floor as he passes them. He doesn’t speak. They wouldn’t want to hear it from him anyway.  
  
They don’t say anything either. They don’t even move until after he turns the corner. He leans back against the wall. It’s like he can’t catch his breath.  
  
He just wants a break. He wants to _rest_. But he doesn’t want to go home. He can’t. It’s not really home anymore. Not yet. And the old mansion in Twilight Town…  
  
Just the thought of travelling that far makes him irritated. Maybe Aerith won’t mind if he steals a spare bed. Just for a little while.  
  
The hall is empty when he rounds the corner again. Kairi and Xion have already gone inside Lea’s room. Riku takes a chance in the room closest to him, at the far end of the hallway.  
  
The room is not so empty. Vanitas stands on the other side of the door, looking like he was just leaving. The scrapes and wounds on his skin are now gone, as are the stains of dirt and blood. Only his clothes are still dusty. They’re the only visual reminder of what he’s just been through. But still, he was beat up pretty badly. Why is he running off? Riku eyes him carefully. “What are you doing?”  
  
Vanitas smirks a bit. “Sounds like you just got chewed out.”  
  
So he heard that too, huh? “I guess,” is all he says. He won’t let Vanitas change the focus so easily. “But that doesn’t answer my question. What are you doing? You’re still injured.”  
  
“I’m fine,” he scowls. “That was nothing. I’ve felt worse.” That’s irrelevant. “I’m not letting you or anyone else keep me cooped up in here. I’m leaving.”  
  
“Vanitas…”  
  
“So what about you, idiot? What are _you_ doing? Hiding from the wrath of Roxy?”  
  
“You’d like that,” he huffs. “But no. I just wanted to get some rest.”  
  
For some reason, Vanitas frowns at that. “How boring.” He points over his shoulder. “Have at it. I’m leaving anyway.”  
  
“You really shouldn’t.”  
  
“Fuck off. I don’t have to listen to you,” he glares.  
  
Riku doesn’t know if he’s just really tired, or if he’s actually given up on fighting, but he sighs at the floor. “No, I guess you don’t.”  
  
“I’m glad we agree.” He practically shoves Riku out of the way as he leaves, and Riku lets the door shut behind him.  
  
Whatever. It doesn’t matter.  
  
He falls face-first onto the cool, clean mattress. Sleep hits him immediately—empty and dreamless. It’s a warm void that swallows him whole.  
  
If only he could stay here. It’s a much more welcoming place.

x  
  
Is it a few hours later, or the next day entirely? Riku doesn’t know. All he knows is the sun is still out, and he woke with a start. His chest is bursting with the sudden, uncanny feeling that he’s running late for something. But he has nowhere to be. No one is looking for him. In fact, it seems like the opposite.  
  
The streets of Radiant Garden are as sunny as always. He leaves Aerith’s place behind without checking to see if the others are still there. The tension just won’t go away.  
  
But then he clicks his tongue. After everything that’s happened, he almost forgot about their only lead.  
  
A library, huh… But he has no idea what he’s looking for. Neither Ven nor Roxas elaborated on their findings at all. They were too excited.  
  
Riku sighs and heads back towards the clinic. It’s worth checking out. And he’d already wandered onto the next block, too…  
  
What is he doing with himself? He’s got to get his head together. He’s so restless it’s laughable.  
  
“Riku, wait!” A girl’s voice calls. He doesn’t immediately recognize it.  
  
He turns and finds Xion heading in his direction. She’s in no hurry. “Xion?”  
  
She stops a decent distance away and summons her keyblade. Riku merely lifts his chin in surprise. The blade is heavy in her hand. “I won’t let you,” she mutters.

It’s an electric shock. “What?”

“I won’t let you keep doing this. I know I said I wouldn’t help, and I wouldn’t interfere, but now… I can’t let you.”

He rolls his shoulders back, entirely unafraid and towering over her. “Then, what changed?”

“Lea is hurt,” he doesn’t miss the quiver in her voice. “I’m afraid of what might go wrong if you keep going. Because so much _can_ go wrong.”

“Lea knew what he was getting into when he agreed to help. If anything, he’s more annoyed that he left himself open.” She doesn’t budge at all. But still, Riku does not draw his blade. “You’ll fight me for that?”

“I will always fight to protect my friends. Always.”

“And what do you think I’m doing?” he snaps, a shred of his cool slipping away from him. “I’m doing all of this to save Sora, _my friend_ , from being erased. If it were Lea or Roxas, wouldn’t you do the same?”

A nervous tongue pulls across her dry lips. “If…” she stumbles, “if it was their decision to go… no matter how much I miss them, and especially if bringing them back put others in danger… no. I wouldn’t.” Riku’s teeth lock into place without him realizing. That can’t be true. Xion stares at him without falter. Her gaze is frustratingly gentle. “It may have been their decision to help you, but you convinced them first. Now it’s my turn to try and convince them otherwise.”

“I was never given that chance!” The sudden explosion of his voice forces Xion back a step. His cool has now completely evaporated. “I never got the chance to reason with Sora, to beg him not to do it, because he kept it from everyone. I never got to try to convince him there was another way. So please, Xion, _let me have that chance_.”

Her eyes are so sad and unflinching. They drive Riku up a wall. “Do you think he hid it from you because he knew how stubborn you’d be?” The insinuation is a wave of cold water. He can’t breathe beneath it. “You two knew each other so well, he knew what you would say, but he’d already decided. He decided on his own, with no convincing from anyone. It was his choice.”

“It was a poor choice,” he mutters. “A poor choice as a way to end all the suffering. But it _didn’t work_! He chose for nothing!”

“No, Riku. That’s not right,” her calm is slowly wearing thin. The keyblade trembles in her grip. “You keep saying that, but you’re lying. You say you’re doing this for the worlds, but that’s not all, is it?” Those eyes finally narrow at him. They turn into knives. “You’re doing this for _you_.”

Hands become fists at his sides. His glare could burn a hole clean through her. But he can’t say anything. He can’t confirm nor deny. All of his words and arguments are tangled up inside him. His chest throbs desperately in frustration.

Something quickly ripples through her face that he can only define as discomfort. Whether it’s towards him or her own words, he’ll never know. “I won’t let you put others in danger for that. I won’t let you put my friends in danger. You can stand there and say you’re trying to end everyone’s suffering, but all I see is you adding to it!” It’s then that he notices the glassy look in her eyes. It’s building at the corners and threatening to spill over. “You’re only making things worse!” she cries. “So just stop. Please. Stop this.”

He stares at her for a long time. A moment becomes a minute. “I can’t.” Why does he sound so tired?

“I know it feels that way,” her voice is mostly breath. “I know it feels like you _have_ to. Believe me, if I was in your place, I’d kick and scream too. If it was to save my friends… I’d do anything to get them back! But if that also meant putting everyone else in danger… I couldn’t bring myself to do it. Because I don’t think it’s worth it! Risking everything—all the worlds—for my selfishness, so I can undermine my friends’ decision to leave… it isn’t fair. So please. Stop this. People have already gotten hurt. You have to understand that this was Sora’s decision, and as his friends we should honour that!” He doesn’t answer. He can’t. This isn’t right. There’s something _wrong_. “I wish it was different too. I really do. But I will respect what Sora’s done and keep this peace safe. It’s what he wanted. You have to accept it, Riku. I know it isn’t fair. I know it _hurts_. But you have to accept that Sora made his choice. You have to accept that he’s gone. Because at the end of it all, you don’t _know_ if you’ll be able to find him, or bring him back. So everything you’ve risked or sacrificed in the meantime could be in vain. Don’t you get it? I’m begging you, Riku. Please stop this.”

She ends on a whisper. The words hit Riku like bullets. He’s biting down hard on the inside of his cheek and blood traces his tongue. But he doesn’t notice it. His heartbeat is raging loud in his ears like a fearsome storm. It’s all white noise. The blood rush in his head makes his body light and his words lighter. He throws them like darts with no effort or consequence. “You only say that because you’re afraid. Shouldn’t you trust Lea and Roxas to take care of themselves?” He can’t spit the words out fast enough. “I’m second-guessing Sora’s choice because the circumstances say I _have_ to, but you don’t trust your friends’ strength. You’re afraid they’ll get hurt or fail. They’re capable, you know. They’re strong. I wouldn’t have asked for their help otherwise!”

“You’re changing the subject.”

“I won’t stop!” he barks over her. “As long as there’s the smallest chance that I can win, I’ll keep trying to bring Sora back. Even if I have to do it alone.” He splays a hand defiantly over his chest. “I’m used to fighting alone. It doesn’t bother me. It won’t stop me.”

A strange, pained look flashes over Xion’s face as he says that. It only lasts a moment, but Riku doesn’t miss it. He really doesn’t know what to make of it. He’s only reminded that Xion was, and maybe still is, closely connected to Sora. That sudden burst of expression reminds Riku of him for some reason.

He’s surrounded himself with people that have such close ties to Sora. It’s a totally different connection than the one they share, and one that he can’t even imagine. But he holds his own bonds close, cherishing them and refusing to let go.

That’s why he’s here now, doing this, and fighting as hard as he can. He truly can’t give this up.

Maybe Kairi’s right, he thinks. Maybe he is obsessed. But he isn’t worried. It’s conviction. He won’t let it become dangerous. Not this time. He’s going to fix everything. No one is going to stand in his way.

So he summons his blade into his hand, a physical extension of his tenacity. “You won’t stop me.”

And Xion takes a full step back. Her face is filled with bitter disappointment. “I know,” she murmurs. “I doubt even Sora could stop you.”

He catches the edge in her tone. A smirk fires back at her. “You’re right. I’m doing all of this for him, after all. So he better be grateful.”

“He won’t be.” She dismisses her keyblade. Those words are so final.

Riku narrows his eyes at her back as she walks away, another reaction he doesn’t understand from a person he should know inside and out.  
  
But despite all his fighting, and all his words, he can’t shake the doubt squirming in his guts.  
  
This is okay, right?  
  
x  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ♪all my friends are dead. push me to the edge♪


	6. The Faith of the Fateless

**6**  
  
  
  
  
Riku wanders from world to world for… how long has it been? A day, at least. It took every last scrap of his self-control to not pull the Gummiphone from his pocket and chuck it into oblivion. He had to settle for turning the device off, and figuring out how to do so took much longer than he’s willing to admit.  
  
But he can’t wallow like this forever. There’s still the matter of finding Sora. It’ll happen. He’s not wrong for wanting this.  
  
The old mansion looms before him yet again. Why is it always this place? He always washes up here when he’s without a tether.  
  
He’s not two steps inside when someone calls his name. Naminé stands at the foot of the stairs. On her way down, it seems. Riku regards her with a nod.  
  
She scurries over to him, reaching for his arm, but she hesitates. That inner argument only lasts a second. She clasps her hands in front of herself like a shield. “Where have you been?”  
  
“I just… needed some air.”  
  
“I see,” she nods, voice heavy and laden with worry. Like it used to be. Like it shouldn’t be anymore. “It’s been two days… are you certain you’re alright?”  
  
So that’s how long it’s been. Riku had no idea. Time wasn’t exactly his concern.  
  
“Lea and I tried to reach you, but…”  
  
“It’s fine,” he states. “How is Lea? Where is he?”  
  
Naminé points to the ceiling. “He and the others are upstairs. The Good Fairies were kind enough to furnish the rooms. He’ll be resting for a while longer, but Aqua is working on treatment for him.” Looks like Riku missed more than he thought. Naminé tilts her head. There’s that loaded smile. “He, Roxas, Ven, and Vanitas are all having lunch.”  
  
“So they’re all here?” Didn’t Roxas and Ventus mention something about a library? It’s their only lead to Sora right now. Maybe he can get some information from Ventus without too much trouble.  
  
“First, come with me,” Naminé suddenly says. Riku only looks at her, and she grabs him by the wrist and tugs him down the hall. Her touch isn’t forceful. It’s delicate and light, more of a suggestion than an insistence, but Riku can’t deny her. What reason does he have? She pulls him into the kitchen and stops by a small table. “Please, sit.”  
  
He has no reason not to, so he obliges. “What is it?”  
  
She flutters about the kitchen with certainty, finding cups and tins, filling a kettle with water and placing it onto the stove. That thing still works? “I wanted to talk with you.”  
  
“That sounds kind of ominous,” he says through a bitter grin.  
  
“It isn’t.” She’s staring down into the kettle, willing it to boil faster. “Would you humor me?”  
  
“I guess so.”  
  
“Thank you, Riku,” the smile is clear in her voice. The kettle rumbles, not yet boiling. Just making noise. She takes her time choosing her words. Careful, as always. “I’ve been talking with Ven… It sounds like tensions are pretty high.”  
  
Two days is a lot of time for stories to get out of hand. Riku sighs towards the table. “What have you heard?”  
  
“The disconnect between you and Roxas…” she shakes her head. “It’s such a great chasm to bridge. It’s not going to be easy for either of you. You’re too similar for that.” What is that supposed to mean? “But, since it would be for Sora, I hoped you’d be able to do it. You both deserve it.”  
  
Riku waits for her to elaborate. She doesn’t. There’s only the rumble of the kettle between them. “What do you mean?”  
  
That rumble turns to a boil. Naminé pulls the kettle from the stove and adds the steaming water to cups filled with tea. She’s in no hurry as she makes her way to the table and sits down, presenting one of the cups to Riku with a soft little smile. “Here.”  
  
“Oh. Thanks.” The cup is hot as he takes it into his hands. The water slowly blends to tea in the silence. Riku can’t shake his uneasiness. “Naminé… what do you mean by we deserve it?”  
  
She blows over her own cup and the steam disperses for a moment. “You deserve to cross that chasm,” she says. Riku still doesn’t understand. “You and Roxas… and Ven and Vanitas, too… you should all support each other. You need to.”  
  
Yeah, right. That’ll never happen. Not at this rate. Roxas has made that perfectly clear.

Naminé holds the warm mug between her hands. Those eyes see right through him. “You need to have a little more faith in them.”

That again? Riku almost scoffs. “Well. Would it be too much to ask for them to do the same for me?”

“Have you given them a reason to?” His eyes flick back towards her. She’s still wearing that same soft smile. “Despite how they seem, and the connections they share, none of them are truly Sora. They don’t know of all the things you’ve been through, what you’ve done, or how hard you’ve worked to better yourself. King Mickey and I do… and Lea does, too. But Roxas, Ventus, and Vanitas do not. They don’t know you, Riku. You have to give them a chance to.”

His brain short circuits. He can’t think of what to say. He takes a slow pull of tea instead.

Naminé delicately traces the rim of the cup with her finger. “If anything, you’ve given them plenty of reasons to not trust you. Acting like the bad guy and pretending nothing has changed… That might be easy. Proving yourself to them might be hard. But if you really want to save Sora, it’s something you’ll _have_ to do.”

Riku stares down into the half-empty mug, watching the light shimmer in the caramel-colored water. “I guess I really can’t do this one on my own, huh?” She sips on her tea in the silence, and lets him gather his thoughts. His mind is a swirling mess. He lowers his head. “None of them will listen to me. They’ve made that clear.”

Is that a giggle? “They are quite stubborn. But I know you can do it.”

“You have a lot of faith in me,” he snorts.

“I do. Because you deserve it.” She’s smiling again. Riku almost believes her. “Go and let them know who you are.”

“I have to, right?” He leaves the cup of tea not-quite-finished as he heads for the stairs.

x  
  
Ven watches in awe as Roxas and Lea shovel an absurd amount of tacos into their mouths. An eating contest, or so they said. Ven has never seen anything like it. Sure, he and Terra would often have friendly little competitions, but nothing could ever compare to the two mountains of tacos sitting between Roxas and the still-bedridden Lea. They’ve already put a sizable dent into them, too. Ven glances across the room at Vanitas, who’s stopped two bites into his own taco to stare at the pair with such disgust on his face. And Ven thought that _he’d_ never seen anything like it. Before all this had even started, Vanitas had never heard of tacos, let alone ate one.  
  
Lea and Roxas keep trying to taunt each other, but they’re so busy eating that it only comes out as muffled grunts. All the banter is replaced with subtle expressions and intense eye contact.  
  
Ven takes a careful bite of the taco in his hands. He doesn’t want it getting cold. Lea had said they were ‘the best in Twilight Town,’ and Ven is tempted to agree.  
  
A few minutes and countless tacos later, Lea seizes and covers his mouth with his hands.  
  
Everyone freezes.  
  
“I can’t,” he groans. “I’m done.”  
  
Roxas instantly leaps from his chair, both fists raised high into the air. “ _Yes_! Take that!”  
  
“Congrats,” Ven grins.  
  
But Roxas isn’t listening. He’s too ecstatic. “How’s defeat taste, Lea? Huh!?”  
  
“A little spicy, actually,” Lea grimaces. He leans back into his pillows with another long groan. “What the heck? Since when have you been able to beat me? You _never beat me_! Er—well, not at _this_.”  
  
Roxas sneers, “Maybe you’re just getting rusty in your old age.”  
  
Ven laughs into his hand.  
  
“Hey—” Lea swipes a long arm at his friend, but Roxas easily sidesteps the attack. “You just got lucky! I’m not exactly in top form, here.” He gestures to the bandages still wrapped around his middle.  
  
“Yeah, yeah,” Roxas cackles. “Let’s just say I’ve been practicing.”  
  
“You’ve only had that body for, what, a few weeks? There’s _no way_.”  
  
“I’m a growing boy.”  
  
“In which direction?” Vanitas snorts. His own taco is only half-gone.   
  
Roxas narrows his eyes. That gaze is so intense. Ven tries to stifle another laugh. “That’s a lot of talk coming from the guy who didn’t even know what a taco _was_ an hour ago.”  
  
Vanitas meets that glare with more malice than necessary. “Not everyone has as much free time as you, Roxy.”  
  
“I told you to stop calling me that, _Vani_.”  
  
And Vanitas absolutely bristles. Wow, that really got to him.  
  
Roxas grins proudly. He’s counting that one as a win.  
  
Lea groans again before Vanitas can find his voice (or his blade, whichever comes first). “I don’t understand it. You’ve never beaten me. Not even close! What’s going on here?”  
  
Roxas shrugs. He pulls a nervous hand behind his head. “Who knows? I _have_ been really hungry today.”  
  
Lea doesn’t seem impressed with that answer, but Roxas doesn’t have another one.  
  
Ven crushes his paper wrapper into a ball. “How often do you guys have these contests?”  
  
“Every now and then,” Lea explains. “Can’t do it too often, though. My wallet can’t take it.”  
  
“I see.”  
  
Roxas starts chuckling to himself. “Remember when we tried it with ice cream?” Nothing about that sounds like a good idea.  
  
Lea’s face twists in pain at the mention of it. “That was the worst brain freeze I’ve ever had in my life.”  
  
“Same here,” he laughs, and Lea and Ven join in.  
  
Man. It’s been so long. Ven can’t remember the last time he sat around and goofed off like this. Probably before all of this mess even started. Back when things were still normal and good.  
  
There’s a light knock at the door. Riku steps inside, and the laughter dies.  
  
Riku assess all of them. Ven’s anxiousness; Lea’s tiredness; Vanitas, looking vaguely annoyed but otherwise unbothered; and Roxas’s icy, stern expression that could cut clean through him.  
  
The silence is stone cold.  
  
And then Lea raises his arm. “Yo, Riku.”  
  
The first to speak. Of course. “How are you feeling?”  
  
“Still kickin’,” he smirks. “You know it’ll take a lot more than that to stop me.”  
  
“Glad to hear it.”  
  
“So, where have you been? Make any progress while I was out?”  
  
“I…” Riku’s voice withers. He shakes his head. “I haven’t. I just… took some time for myself.”  
  
Someone huffs.  
  
Lea only nods. “No shame in that.”  
  
“Huh?”  
  
“You gotta look after yourself, too.”  
  
He props a hand on his hip. “Big talk coming from someone in a sickbed.”  
  
“Hey, I’m looking after myself,” Lea declares, patting his mummified abdomen.  
  
“Fair enough,” Riku tries and fails to laugh.  
  
“What are you doing here?” Roxas suddenly demands.  
  
Lea wilts where he sits. “Roxas…”  
  
“You wouldn’t come in with all of us here if you just wanted to check on Lea. So, what do you want?”  
  
Perceptive. Much more perceptive than Sora. Those eyes can see right through him too, huh? Riku sighs. Come on. He has to spit it out. “I wanted to say something to you.”  
  
“What is it?”  
  
“It’s nice to meet you, Roxas.”  
  
A fumble. A falter. Roxas can only blink. “W-wha?”  
  
“We’ve never had a chance to actually meet, have we? We fought every time we saw each other.”  
  
“That—… that wasn’t my fault.”  
  
“And even if we did have that chance, I’m not the same person you met back then. A lot has changed.” Riku’s hand instinctively covers his chest. “I’ve changed.”  
  
Roxas folds his arms. “Is that so?”  
  
“It must be, because if I was the same person I was two years ago, I would’ve beaten you all down ages ago and traded you at the Door in exchange for Sora.” Roxas gapes at him. “But I can’t do that. I’m not the same person I used to be. I couldn’t do that to any of you. I would never forgive myself for it…” then he smirks, “and I doubt Sora would ever forgive me, either.”  
  
“Wow,” Ven drones like he’s not surprised.  
  
Roxas scowls. “The fact that things like that even cross your mind is what worries me.”  
  
Riku only shrugs. “Then be worried.”  
  
“Damn,” Vanitas nods. “That idea is downright villainous. You know, I can appreciate that.”  
  
“I’m ashamed to have _your_ approval,” Riku mutters.  
  
“You wouldn’t be half-bad as a villain. We could’ve had so much fun. But it’s too bad you’re just a boring hero now.”  
  
“I wouldn’t call myself that, either.”  
  
Vanitas snorts. “Please. The only people that call _themselves_ heroes are tryhards with low self-esteem. You’re just a tryhard with a bloated sense of morality. So _I’m_ calling you a hero, _Hero_.”  
  
Riku has no idea if that’s supposed to be an insult or not. Knowing Vanitas, probably so. Even if Riku doesn’t actually _know him_ at all. “Oh. That’s right,” he mumbles, and turns to face Vanitas fully. Riku doesn’t miss how he shirks back the smallest bit. “Vanitas, I… should’ve had more faith in you.”  
  
Everyone in the room seems to stop moving. Vanitas’s mouth flaps uselessly. “What?”  
  
“I assumed the worst when I saw Lea hurt like that. It really… wasn’t fair to you. I can’t say I know what you’re like, or what you’re capable of, when I don’t know you. You were just doing your best. I’m sorry.”  
  
That expression is one of absolute shock. “W-what?” Vanitas sputters again.  
  
“I’m sorry for doubting you,” he repeats, but it doesn’t seem to help.  
  
“You should be,” he eventually blurts. A typical answer. Riku expected that. Maybe he’s not so clueless about Vanitas after all.  
  
But that’s the easy part. Any transgressions towards Vanitas are surface level, at best. Riku turns towards Roxas, and the blonde shoots him a glare that could melt him down to nothing. Roxas doesn’t say a word. He merely waits. Riku forces his fists to unclench. He’d really prefer to have this conversation in private, but if he’s going to create any sense of camaraderie with these guys, he has to say it now. He knew it wouldn’t be easy. “I know I said I wasn’t sorry for what happened,” he forces, “but that’s not entirely true.”  
  
Roxas lifts an eyebrow. Ever silent. Ever fuming.  
  
“I would never take back what I did that day. I won’t lie to you and say I would. But that doesn’t mean… I don’t wish it could’ve been different. I wanted there to be another way, but there was only one path, and it was awful but it was my penance. I was prepared to throw myself away to fix what I’d broken.” But Roxas already knows all of that. Surely. “I’ve worked so hard to not be that person anymore. You didn’t deserve to be caught in the crossfire then, and you don’t deserve it now. I’m sorry.”  
  
Now both eyebrows lift.  
  
“I’m going to treat you like an ally, and I can only hope you’ll do the same for me. We can’t work together when we’re always at each other’s throats. We could… be friends, you know. At least, I think Sora would want that.”  
  
His face is stern but blank. He sharply exhales, eyes focusing on the distance. “Yeah. He would.”  
  
Nothing else. He doesn’t agree, or accept, or anything. Riku hears Ventus shift uneasily. He glances over and finds Lea staring Roxas down with unyielding eyes. There’s no telling what he’s thinking. And it doesn’t look like Roxas is ready to say anything else right now.  
  
This is exhausting. More than Riku thought it would be. His chest is twisting like he just ran a marathon. Things like this really wear him out. The silence is ongoing, and he pulls a hand behind his head. “Anyway… sorry to kill the mood. I’ll leave you guys alone.” No one knows what else to say. There’s only silence. Riku moves towards the exit.

“Wait.” Roxas barks. He’s still staring at the floor with frustration leaving lines in his face. Riku turns back, and Roxas moves with a jerk. He storms over with that same downcast gaze and shoves a wrapped taco into Riku’s hands.

“What’s this?”

Roxas finally looks at him. “It’s a taco, you bumpkin.”

“That’s not what—”

“You can stay if you want.”

All feeling drops out of his body. “What?”

Ven leans excitedly in his seat. “Yeah! Hang out with us!”

Riku looks at all of them. Lea’s proud smirk; Ven’s excitement; Vanitas’s indifference; and Roxas’s hard stare. It’s not a weapon this time. It’s almost expectant. “Alright,” Riku finally relents. He lifts up the taco. “Thanks.”  
  
“Don’t mention it,” Roxas mutters, and returns to his seat.  
  
Lea keeps watching him, though with much less intensity than before. He carefully stretches. “So, what’s the plan now, kiddos?”  
  
“Don’t call us that,” Roxas swats. “Ven and I went back to Disney Castle while you were still at the clinic. We think we might’ve found a lead.”  
  
“Oh, yeah?”  
  
“Yeah!” Ven chimes in. “We didn’t find any ancient texts or anything, but we did find a lot of information about a long-lost library of treasures hidden in a desert somewhere.”  
  
Lea narrows his eyes. “I don’t remember there being any deserts around Disney Castle.”  
  
“There aren’t, but you know where there _is_ a desert?”

Riku can only think of one. “Agrabah?”

“Agrabah.”

Roxas grimaces. “Ah, man… Anywhere but there.”

“Same here, buddy,” Lea groans. “But I don’t know of any _other_ deserts, do you?”  
  
Roxas can only shake his head, still not happy about it.

Ven sighs: “Yeah. It’s all beach; no ocean. Just great.” The others start chuckling, and he beams like he’s so proud of himself and his joke. As if that tiny group laugh was all he wanted.

It’s strange. It’s so much brighter in here than it was before. The atmosphere is so light and relaxed. Ven and Roxas are laughing at something else now, while Lea and Vanitas exchange quiet banter. Sunlight shimmers through the window. The taco slowly grows cold in Riku’s hands.

“Whoa, Hero, don’t get all emotional. It’s just a taco,” Vanitas scoffs, perhaps vaguely concerned by whatever expression is on Riku’s face. But as soon as Vanitas says those words, Ven, Roxas, and Lea absolutely explode with laughter. Vanitas glares at all of them. “What? What did I say?”

Riku tries to smile, and rubs the stinging out of his eyes. “Right. Sorry.” Honestly, it wasn’t even that brilliantly funny of a comment, but everyone is incapacitated.

“Ow ow ow,” Lea hisses through his spasms. “My ribs are in bad shape, remember?! Don’t do that!”

“Don’t do _what_?” Vanitas demands. He really doesn’t understand humor… Well, why would he?

Ven wipes a tear from his eye. “Man. I haven’t laughed that hard in ages,” he gasps. “Thanks, Vanitas.”

The darker boy bristles. This is all too much for him.

Riku almost sighs. “Vanitas, they’re saying you’re funny. It’s a compliment.”

Only narrowing eyes respond to that.

Lea suddenly perks up: “Speaking of which, don’t go stealing my thing! _I’m_ the Class Clown, got it memorized?”

“I don’t understand any of you idiots,” Vanitas grumbles.

Riku expected nothing less.

x  
  
_I can’t let it out._

_This can’t happen._

_It has to stay._

_No._

_I can do this._

_I have to do this._

_I can’t let it._

_I can’t._

x

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys remember FMA: Brotherhood? 
> 
> No, I will not elaborate on why I ask this.
> 
> @VaniVeniVici


End file.
